


Silver Hope

by Kitten_Stella



Category: RWBY
Genre: Minor Character Death, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-22
Updated: 2018-02-19
Packaged: 2018-11-17 12:56:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 88,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11275722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitten_Stella/pseuds/Kitten_Stella
Summary: Ruby Rose, having unlocked the power of her silver eyes as a young child, was a socailly awkward prodigy who just wanted to protect the people she loves. All the while, trying to convince her childhood crushes that she loves them despite them being older. She will do what it takes though, to reach her dream of being a Huntress.





	1. Prologue - Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first story in a while but I like it and I hope you will too. I was originally going to have just one Prologue chapter and move on with the story but it turned out to be longer than expected so I split it in two. Also, as the age of consent in my country is 18, this story is going to be a major slow burn so be prepared.

Running had never been this hard before, and she knew that she wasn't going to make it in time, not with the amount of blood that she'd already lost. She stumbled again and tripped over a hidden root in the snow, collapsing in exhaustion and leaning against a tree. Breathing harsh and trying to blink away the black spots in her vision, the woman pulled out her scroll and with shaking hands, dialled the number of the only person who could possibly help.

"Summer? What's wrong? Are you okay? I thought you were- "

"Q-qrow," she whimpered, "they found me. I-I don't know how b-but they found me and-" she cuts off with a gasp and drops her scroll as a dagger plunges into her stomach.

"Summer? Summer! What's going on- I'm on my way okay? I'm coming just- "

"Qrow…" she says in pain trying to remove the dagger but it had lodged itself in the tree behind her too. "Qrow please, check on the girls and Tai. Don't let anything happen to them, please…" she all but begged the man who she had come to see as her greatest friend.

"Summer what is happening? I'm on my way to them now but you have to hold on okay? I'll get- "

"You know; you are a difficult woman to track down." A voice said from ahead of the woman, unknowingly cutting off Qrow. "Though not as difficult as I had expected. Nor do you put up as much of a fight either, disappointing to say the least Miss Rose, I had expected so much more from you." Sighed a large man as he stepped out from the trees and crouched in front of the dying woman. He gripped the handle of the dagger and twisted, making the woman hiss in pain.

"Hazel," she hissed through her teeth, "I should have known that you'd work for a witch like Salem."

"Yes, you should have, and now you are going to die and take the power of the silver eyes with you. Do not worry, we won't touch a hair on pretty little Yang's head though it is interesting that you would love another woman's child but not have any of your own to carry on the power."

"I wouldn't wish this curse on anyone, let alone a child- ugh!" she screeched through her teeth as he pulled the bloody dagger from her body, wiping as much of the blood off on her skirt before standing. With one last look to make sure that she would die, the large man walked off, leaving just as quickly and he came.

"Summer? I'm almost at Patch, I'll be there soon okay? I'll get you help-"

"Qrow, neither of us are going to make it and you know it… just- just look after them for me? Don't let them mourn for too long, okay?"

"Summer, no! You listen to me, okay. You will make it-"

"I'm sorry Qrow… You were the greatest friend and partner I could ever have hoped for… thank you…"

"Summ-" Beep, beep, beep. "Dammit Summer."

* * *

Signing sadly as she hung up on her best friend, Summer leaned back against the tree, trying to ignore the sticky blood now covering her lower body as the pain started to fade away and everything was becoming white. Just as she was about to give up, to finally let the light take her, she heard a small whimper and some rustling leaves to her left.

"Mummy?"

Snapping her head to the sound, Summer stared wide eyed at her 2-year-old daughter crawling over the snow to her dying mother. Knowing that she didn't have much time left, Summer tried her hardest to make her daughter understand what she was about to say.

"Ruby- sweetheart, oh god, no- Ruby, Petal, you have to listen to me okay Petal?" Summer said, trying to cover her wound with her cloak, but failed. "I know you don't understand right now but you have to listen very carefully to mummy, okay? You're special Ruby, s-so much more special than you know. You have beautiful silver eyes that hold so much power but Ruby, Petal, you have to be careful okay? There are a lot of bad people that will hurt you because of your eyes-" She cut off, coughing up blood into her hand, the black spots growing bigger and bigger by the second. "I don't have much t-time but Ruby, don't trust anyone with those amazing eyes of yours. I can't explain now but you can talk to Qrow or even Ozpin, he could help-"

"Mummy?"

"I'm so sorry sweetie, that I'll never get to see you and your sister grow up a-and I'm so, so, so sorry that you had to see this Petal, god am I sorry you have to see this but remember this okay Ruby. I will _always_ love you and your sister, always. Here, take these and never tell anyone about your eyes Ruby, you can't trust anyone with those beautiful eyes of yours…"

Ruby didn't understand why her Mummy just gave her weapons to her, doesn't she need those? And why did she fall asleep? It's cold out here and what is all that red stuff? Should it be coming out like that?

"Mummy? Mummy wake up. Mummy? Mummy?!" Scrambling over to her mummy, Ruby tried to shake her awake with her tiny hands after putting her mothers' collapsed weapons in her pockets; mummy wouldn't like it if she lost them right after she gave them over.

Now Ruby really didn't understand, all she knew was that there was a big scary man who hurt mummy and now her mummy won't wake up and she was scared and now there are big scary Grim everywhere and Mummy still won't wake up and now the scary Grim are getting closer and not knowing what else to do, tiny and terrified Ruby screamed out in terror and agony, somehow knowing that her mummy won't be waking up.

A blinding silver light burst from her eyes as she screamed, and with it a dark red glow grew from her small body and shattered, and not a second later, rose petals started to flow from the girl.

Opening her eyes, Ruby stared in horror at the now frozen Grim, ready to pounce on her. Not knowing what else to do, Ruby took off for her home, running as fast as she could for her daddy, not realising that along the way she had turned into a spiral of rose petals and was flying through the forest at impossible speeds for a 2-year-old.

Finally seeing her house, Ruby slowed down, subconsciously turning back into her normal self but the unlocking of all her powers drained her, leading her to collapse on the swing on their front porch, whimpering in pain at overexerting herself and crying, already knowing that now Mummy will never be coming back.

* * *

Flying as fast as he could down the path to the house, Qrow stopped when he was suddenly blinded from a bright silver light deeper in the forest.

'Summer!' He screeched, knowing that she wouldn't have used her powers unless she had no other choice. Knowing he needed to hurry even more, Qrow transformed back into a man and ran to the house, promising himself that he'll be quick and just check on Taiyang and the girls before finding Summer, just like she wanted.

Upon seeing the house, Qrow sprinted the rest of the way, only seeing a cold and shivering Ruby asleep on the front porch swing, seemingly having a nightmare if the way she was whimpering and crying were any indication. Signing in frustration, Qrow quickly but gently picked up the sleeping child and put her in her bed.

"You're okay Petal, you're okay." He whispered as he carried her up to the room she shared with Yang, careful not to wake her.

"Mummy?" She whimpered at the nickname.

"No sweetie, but I'll bring her back." He said before placing her in her bed, quickly kissing her head and racing back out the door, a quick glance at Tai and Yang asleep to make sure they were alright before taking off into the forest, not caring if he slammed the door on his way.

The slamming of the front door roused the sleeping Hunter on the sofa immediately into wakefulness. In a rush to get up and see what happened, Taiyang accidentally woke up his four-year-old daughter. Racing to the door, he could only just see Qrow before he faded into the forest, racing for something in the woods.

* * *

"Dad? What's happenin'?" Asked a bleary-eyed Yang as she too looked out the door but didn't see anything weird.

"Nothing Sweetie, why don't we get you to bed huh?" Tai said, softly nudging his daughter up the stairs to her shared room, Ruby already passed out in exhaustion, not even having enough energy to dream, though none of them would have been pleasant.

Putting Yang to bed was easily done as she was already tired from having just woken up a minute ago and was already dressed in her pyjamas.

"Goodnight my little Firecracker." He whispered to the already sleeping girl before backing out of the room.

Curious to know when Qrow had gotten back and where he had rushed off to so loudly, Taiyang went outside and sat on the swing to wait for him to come back as he usually doesn't wander off for too long once he's back. After 20 minutes passed Tai was getting worried; Qrow was an exceptional Hunter, what could be taking him so long? It was then that he could see Qrow silhouette in the trees but whatever relief he felt was overcome with dread as his friend walked closer and he could see what was in his arms, or more accurately; who.

Summer Rose, his current love and the mother of his youngest daughter, lying limp in his teammates arms.

"No…" He whispered, but the look on Qrows face said it all; she was gone and there was no bringing her back.

"Tai… I'm-"

"NO!" He raced over and grabbed her body and sunk to the wet snow-covered ground, "No, no, no, no, no! She can't be! It was supposed to be an easy mission. Just a bunch of Grim on the island, nothing more…"

"I know, I know. I'm so, so sorry, I wasn't fast enough and I didn't think he would find her it's been years! I thought she was safe. I'm sorry- "

"Dad? What was all that shouting? What are you doing out here? Uncle Qrow? What-" Yang cut herself off, eyes going wide and tears immediately building up and pouring down her face, "Mum?"

Qrow, now with empty arms, sprung up and raced over to his niece as she crumbled to the ground sobbing.

"I know Firecracker, I know," Qrow whispered into her hair, cradling her tiny body as she shudders through each agonising sob, both watching as Taiyang slowly rises and carries his dead love into the house.

Picking up his still sobbing niece, Qrow follows him in and quietly closes the door behind him, tears still falling steadily down his face but knowing that h had to be the strong one now, for all his family.

Qrow watches from his perch on another sofa as Taiyang softly lays Summers body down on the largest sofa and gently cradles her face, softly kissing her lips as though it might bring her back like in the stories they tell little Ruby.

Quietly, Qrow notices that Yang has once again fallen asleep having exhausted herself crying. Standing, Qrow gently placed her back in her bed again, cooing at her softly when she stirred when he moved away. A quick glance over to Ruby to make sure she was still asleep was all he could afford before swiftly returning to the lounge room, Tai still in the same spot on the floor, head bent over Summers limp hand, cradling it as though it was crumble away if he held too tight.

"Tai-"

"What. Happened."

"I'm so sorry Tai, I honestly thought she was okay-"

"What. Happened. Qrow."

Sighing sadly, Qrow leaned back and pulled out his flask, taking a long pull from it before speaking,

"I don't know really. I was already on my way back from my mission when she called me saying that they got her and that they'd found her."

Taking a deep, shaking breath he continued, "Sh-she didn't sound good and so I started rushing and then there was this horrible thunk sound and I think she got stabbed through and pinned to the tree and then I think she dropped her scroll. She must of, she sounded further away but she told me to make sure that you and the girls were okay and Hazel, _Hazel_ came and he was taunting her about finding her and her silver eyes and how she would be the last of the silver eyed warriors and then left her for dead."

Having stood up by this point, Qrow started to pace and try to occupy his hands but could only find his flask, taking another long sip it before replacing the lid.

"I don't think they know about Ruby; he was saying how she could look after someone else child but wouldn't have any of her own to carry on the power and she just- she just said that she wouldn't wish that curse on a child. God I hope they don't find out about Ruby…" he sighed, sitting down again, his head in his hands and tears starting to fall and his voice think, "She knew I wasn't going to get there in time but dammit I tried, I tried so hard and I was so close and then I saw this flash of light and I knew it had to be her but I promised that I'd check on you first and I did and then I went straight to her but it was too late, she was already gone and all the Grim were crumbling away already but I didn't care; I just wanted to bring her home and to make I worse, I couldn't find her weapons anywhere. They weren't there. He took them, he left her for dead and took her only weapons and ugh!" He yelled, throwing his now empty flask at the sofa. After a second, he crumbled and sat in a sobbing mess on the floor.

The night carried on much the same, the men both crumbled on the floor of the living room, crying out in anguish at the loss of such a beloved woman.

* * *

The next few days were long and tiring and endless and confusing for everyone. Taiyang had become blank and only caring for one thing and that was giving Summer the respect she deserved, organising a burial and headstone and making sure that everything would be okay financially, not paying any mind to his two daughters knowing that Qrow would take of them.

And take care of them he did, although not easily, with Yang sobbing and upset, wanting her father to just hug her and tell her it would all be okay only for him to ignore her. Confused and upset, Yang clung to her Uncle and helped him take of Ruby, who had woken up crying about Summer and how her head and her eyes and her whole body hurt. Not quite sure what to do, Qrow treated her as he would if she were sick, keeping the room dark and the noises low and giving her a warm bath to relax her muscles. It took almost a week but gradually she got better and was up and about; her body still hurt and so did her head but she knew that she had to get up and help her sister and uncle and dad, though she hid her mother's Sai's under pillows wanting to have something of her that she could keep.

After that, life seemed to move quicker, though not better. One day bled into the next and nothing really improving, each day as forgettable as the next, except for one person. Although it took her a little while, Ruby came to discover that she could remember everything she saw; every picture, every story, every face her father made and everything her mother had said to her the night she died.

But it was the times that really mattered to her that she could remember best. Like when she and Yang were going to make their mummy's cookies but couldn't find the recipe anywhere; Ruby recited the whole thing perfectly.

But what Ruby liked to remember most is the day her favourite person saved her and her sister from the big scary Grim.

Yang had decided that she needed to find her birth mother Raven, and convince her to return home and help dad because he wasn't in a good place. Finding a tiny clue, Yang had put her little sister in their red wagon and started walking. Ruby got bored quickly and was lulled to sleep by the rocking of the wagon. Yang had to have been walking for ages because when Ruby woke up they were in an entirely different place and the sun was steadily making its way behind some mountains in the distance.

Ruby was getting scared as it grew darker and Yang looked really, really tired but kept walking, saying that they were almost there. It was cold and there was only a tiny bit of sunlight left when the sisters made it to the run-down cottage. Ruby had a bad feeling about it and tried to tell Yang but the blonde had already taken off and run for the door, all but collapsing once she reached it, only to be knocked back by a massive Boewolf paw from inside. Worried and scared, Ruby ran to her sister and could only watch as the scary creatures pounced at the pair, jaws open and claws out, ready to eat the two young girls before it. Out of nowhere a massive blade cut straight through the middle of it. Appearing in front of the girls, Qrow Branwen, massive scythe ready and cape flapping, a couple of black feathers floating down.

He only spared them a glance to make sure they were okay before bounding off again to rid them of the remaining Grim, but that was all it took for young Ruby to fall in love. It may have been a hero crush to start but she didn't know that; Ruby loved everything about him in that moment. She loved his cool attitude, how amazing a Hunter he was, how he wields his scythe that up until then, they had only seen as a sword, and finally, she loved how just seeing his cape made her feel safe…

* * *

The last few years had been rough on all of them, but with Qrow needed for missions and what happened when he got back from his first mission to not be able to find the girls, he knocked some sense into Taiyang, literally. Once they were home and fed and in bed, he punched him through the front door and onto the lawn.

Although he tried to wit as late as possible, Ruby still watched through the now empty doorway as Qrow beat and shouted at her father until he truly understood what he had done and what he could have lost. After a while Tai finally broke and collapsed to the ground sobbing for what he could have lost. Ruby, thinking it was all okay now because they were hugging and hugging was good and that she should leave, and was only stopped by the heartbreaking admittance from her father's sobbing lips.

"I-It's just so hard to l-look at her. With her so innocent and happy silver eyes. The same eyes that got her mother killed and-"

"I know, I know. She looks just like her mother Tai, but you're not just hurting yourself when you can't look at her. You have to know that, right? Your breaking her tiny heart knowing that her father can't even look at her."

"I don't think she's noticed yet-"

"But she will, and you know it."

Ruby decided then that she didn't need to hear the rest. Little Ruby didn't need to know that her father hated her and couldn't stand to look at her. Neither of the them noticed she was there but they both certainly noticed when she wouldn't look at them the next morning and every morning after that. She warmed back up to Qrow quickly, still very muchly so in love with everything he did and was always sad when he would go on missions. She had even started to tie a red blanket around her neck to make a cape, just so she could feel like he was always with her. That made the red hooded cape she was holding that much more fitting.

"Yang! I want this one! I want this one!" A little six-year-old Ruby yelled across the store, now wearing the way to big cape on her shoulders, the hood so big that it covered her eyes although she could still see.

"Ruby, you don't have to shout. The store isn't that big." Said a taller blonde as she made her way across to her little sister. Only to stop short when she saw Ruby; looking up at her with timid eyes as a red cape.

"Ruby, it looks just like…"

"A mix of mums and Qrow's! It's great, isn't it!" She asked jumping around in excitement.

"Yeah, yeah, I can see you love it…you gonna be okay with it that big though? It might fall off if you're not careful." Explained Yang.

"Yeah, I know, but doesn't everyone get bigger stuff so they can grow into it or something? I'll grow big and strong and it'll fit perfectly." Explained Ruby as she climbed the chair to stand on it, almost falling as she got up.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hop down you, and we can go get it, then we can show dad your new safety blanket." Yang smirked as they got all the stuff they wanted before heading to the front of the store to pay.

Looking down when she heard no response, Yang saw the more disheartened Ruby shuffling her feet awkwardly.

"Do you think he'll like it though…?" she mumbled knowing Yang would hear her.

Sighing at how much this was upsetting Ruby, Yang hugged her sister.

"Don't worry about dad, I'm sure he'll love it if you love it, and you do love it, don't you?" she whispered to her younger sister and watched as she immediately bounced back up.

"Of course! It's so col and flowy and red like-"

"Uncle Qrows, yes I know. You and your weird crush on him are funny." Yang chuckled as they payed for their items with their dad's card and then laughed at Ruby's puffed out cheeks.

"It's not a crush and he's not my uncle he's yours so ha!"

"Oh really? It's not a crush, is it? Then what is it?"

"It's love you dumby! Get back here you!" she shouted as her sister took off in the direction of their father.

"Dad! Ruby's in Lo~ve!" Screamed Yang as she spotted her father leaning against a wall not too far from the store they were just in.

"Oh, really now? And who might she be in lo~ve with?" Taiyang responded, looking up to see his daughter racing towards him. After catching Yang, he looked back up to make sure Ruby wasn't too far behind when he saw her; running as fast as she could, almost tripping on the draping red fabric surrounding her, but it was when she looked up that he almost started crying. Her beautiful silver eyes shining with happiness and her dark hair with red tips flowing around her face and a billowing cape, she looked so much like her mother again in that moment.

Yang was going to respond when she looked up and saw Ruby go from an angry yet happy little girl chasing her sister to the small and sad little girl that they've all seen too much of over the past couple of years. Sighing sadly, she turned around to see the exact look Ruby was afraid of painted all over their father's face – the sad look that says just looking at Ruby reminds him far too much of his dead love – and then the undoubtful way he turns his head away so that he can't see her to try and control his emotions.

Upon hearing Ruby sniffle and walk up the them, they both look down to see her quietly crying, trying to wipe her face on her new cape. Reaching out for her, Tai watches as she huddles back into her cape with a small whimper.

"Ruby…"

"I'm really, really sorry daddy…"

"Ruby, no… No, you – I…."

"I know Daddy, I'm sorry… I know why you can't look at me sometimes and I'm really, really sorry Daddy but I really like the cape, it reminds me of Qrow and he's safe and I just want to feel safe and I know it looks Mummy's and I'm sorry, I'm sowwy, I'm sowwy!" Ruby babbled as she looked down at her hands crying, her hood falling further down to cover her face.

Not hearing anything from the two in front of her, Ruby peaks up at her father only to see him crying and his hands shaking. Not knowing what to do and only knowing that she's the reason he's upset, Ruby takes one last look before running away. _'Maybe if he can't see me he'll be happy again'_ Ruby thought as she ran through the city. A faint "Ruby no! Come back!" could be heard but she didn't pay it much attention.

After running for a while, Ruby only stopped when she accidentally ran into someone and fell. Finally looking around to see where she was Ruby saw that somehow, she'd run all the way to the docks for the Bullheads to Beacon Academy. Before she can even think about what to do, everyone started to move forwards onto the now empty Bullhead, pushing and pulling at her until she's somehow in the middle of the vehicle and it's already taken off and on its way to Beacon.

"Ahhh," Ruby started crying, "What am I going to do? What am I going to do? Daddy's going to be so upset and then he'll hate me even more than he already does and then- and then-"

"Excuse me little miss are you okay?" asked a nice-looking Faunas man as he crouched down to her height.

"Um… I'm not sure? I d-don't think I'm supposed to be here, I got kind of shoved onto the ship and I don't know where to go…" Ruby replied, tears building in her eyes again though nobody could see them as her hood was still up and covering her face, though they could certainly hear it in her voice how scared she was.

"Well how about this? When we get there, I can take you to Professor Ozpin and he should be able to help you out, okay?" He said as he pets her hooded head and watched amused as she perked right up at the name of the Professor.

"Professor Ozpin? There's a Professor Ozpin at Beacon?"

"Yep, he's the headmaster at Beacon Academy."

"Oh cool, I think my mummy knew an Ozpin. Maybe they're the same person?"

"If your parents are hunters than that is quite likely." He nodded in agreement before looking back at his partner waving them over, "Would you like to come and wait with me and my partner over there, we have a spare seat?"

"Yes please! Thank you for helping me."

"Of course. Come on, we can wait over here…"

* * *

"I'm afraid the Professor is currently teaching a class in the field at the back of the school but she's welcome to wait for him here. I'm sure he'll be back soon enough."

"Thank you, I'll leave her in your care then. Is that okay with you little one, we have a class to get to, sorry."

"Yep! That's okay, I'm sure he won't be too long, right? Thank you, Mr and Miss nice people, it was nice to meet you!"

"You too sweetie. Have a good day."

After waving goodbye to the two nice people, Ruby thought about how she would get to this Ozpin persons class, because she wasn't just going to wait for him. With a genius plan in mind, Ruby kindly asked the lady at the desk where the toilets were before walking across to them and then sneakily making her way across the school, trying to find the back.

After wandering around the school for a bit, a loud shout startled Ruby and drew her attention to what looked like a class in a field. _'Hey, maybe this is his class! It looks like a field. I don't know if I'm at the back though but now I just have to see if it is Professor-'_

"Ozpin!"

' _Found Him!'_ Trying to be sneaky, Ruby decided to hide in the bushes closest to the group and watched the silver haired man deflect ball after ball, blind folded, some flying back and hitting the person who threw it.

"You know that you should all be practicing instead of throwing them all at me!" The blind folded man called as expertly dodged three balls from different directions by flipping over them all.

"Sooooo~ cooool~" Ruby whispered to herself but whimpered when his head snapped to look in her direction for a second before focusing back on his students.

"Alright, one more shot from each of you and then we'll leave it for today." He called out again before lowing himself into a crouch, waiting for the next attempt.

Hearing them all mumbling to each other, it became clear to him that they were all going to try hitting him all at once. Chuckling to himself, Ozpin waited with baited breath and expertly dodged them all, letting them hit people on the other side of the circle they had formed before jumping and round house kicking the last ball straight into a bucket off to the side. Sensing that was all, he took off the blindfold and directed his class to pack up, ignoring their groans of disappointment in lieu of keeping an ear out for the small voice from the bushes.

Ruby watched as the Professor, not even looking in the right direction, call out to a student about to try one last shot, that throwing it would not end well and then watched as they all walked back to the main building.

"You might as well come out little red, we both know that I know your there!" Ozpin called out and watched curiously as a small child in a far too large red cape shuffle out from the bushes with a small 'meep!', her hood all the way up so he couldn't see her face.

"You're not in trouble child, don't worry." He said, tone soft and crouched down from his towering height. "What are you doing all the way out here by yourself?"

"Oh well, I was running and then I got lost and then I ended up on this ship and then I was freaking out but then this nice wolf man helped me and I sat with him and his partner and then we went to see you but then you weren't there so I was gonna wait for you but then I was like 'I know where you are so I'll just go find you' but then I got lost because I didn't know where the back of the school was but then I saw everyone around here and was like 'So Cool!' and you were jumping and flipping and then I heard someone say your name and was like 'Yay, found him' but then I didn't know what to do so I just hid in the bushes and watched and you were so coooool~ and woah~" quickly taking a breath from her rambling, Ruby looked up to see he had stood up again and was collecting his stuff. "And you are super, super tall."

Chuckling at the adorable little girl, Ozpin had to agree, "Yes I am, thank you. So, you were impressed with the class I take it?"

"Yep, yep! It was ama~zing! You were jumping and flipping and dodging and you were blindfolded and it was just amazing…" she sighed.

"Well thank you miss… I don't think I know your name yet."

"Oh, I'm Ruby. Hi!"

"Hello Ruby, so would you like to get back to your family now?" Ozpin asked, watching as the adorable bouncing girl suddenly stops and looks down. Crouching down to try and look her in the eyes, he continues to watch as she pulls her hood even further down her face.

"…Or not. You can stay with me for a little longer, I guess. I have some paperwork to do but your more than welcome to sit with me if you like-"

"Yes please! I don't want to go back yet…"

"Alright then, how about we get going." After taking a couple of steps, Ozpin turned around and saw her stumbling and tripping on her cape.

Chuckling to himself, Ozpin walks back and crouches in front of her, his back facing her. Hearing her small 'huh?' Ozpin turned his head to look back at her with a small smile, "Hop on, I'll give you a piggy back ride."

It was a quiet walk back to his office, only hearing an occasional sniffle from the small bundle on his back. Losing himself in thought, Ozpin didn't notice the odd looks he was getting but was pulled from his musings at the feel of his passenger's tiny hands playing with his hair.

"Having fun there?"

"Your hair is so soft, I really like it. But why is it silver?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I see a lot of old people at home but they all have wrinkles and stuff but they have grey hair, yours is a shining silver, not grey, and you don't look that old…"

Chuckling to himself, Ozpin nodded. "While I can tell you that I am older than you could ever imagine, you not wrong about the colour. I just like it silver, it makes me look more mature."

"What does 'mature' mean?"

"It means to be an adult, responsible and a grown up, I guess."

"Does that mean that all grownups are mature?"

"Not quite, some adults didn't really grow up mentally and still act like children, they don't set a very good example."

"Oh, but why do you need to look more mature? I thought you said that you were really old. Shouldn't that make you the maturest?"

"Maturest isn't a word Ruby."

"Oh."

"And while I may be older and have lived many years, I don't look it so I try and make my appearance match my profession."

"Profession?"

"My job as the Headmaster. People listen to you more if they don't think that your younger than them."

"Oh, well I like it. It's pretty."

"Thank you, not many people say that."

"Your welcome!" Ruby paused as people looked at her funny as they walked into the elevator to his office. Once the doors closed she continued, "So do you still grow old and stuff or do you always look like this?"

Shocked at her question, Ozpin swung his head around to look at her, accidentally hitting her head too.

"Ow."

"Sorry, sorry. But why would you think that I don't age?"

"Oh, I was wrong? Sorry. It's just that you said that you were 'older than you could ever imagine' and I can imagine a lot so then I thought that you'd be really, really old but then you'd have wrinkles and stuff and you don't so I just kind of thought that maybe you don't grow old and stuff but oops, sorry, I guess I got that wrong. And could you please say something because I think I'm running out of words to say and yeah-"

"No, you were right, your fine. It's just that nobody has ever figured that out before…"

"But you told me…?"

"Not really Ruby, a couple of vague statements that you somehow pieced together faster than anyone I know… You are far more than anyone thinks, aren't you?" He muses as he walks into his office, gently placing his small companion on the sofa on his office.

Upon reaching his desk and not hearing a response, Ozpin turns around to see little Ruby playing with a pair of retractable Sai swords, opening and retracting them as she pleases. They were far too big for her hands but she looked like she knew them well, an air of familiarity about her as she watched them transform, entranced.

"Well, those seem far too big for you." Jolting her slightly as he broke the silence.

"They were mummy's. she gave them to me when she went away. I don't think Daddy knows I have them but I don't want him to, he'll take them away if he knew."

"Where did she go?"

"Mummy went to live with everyone else in the stars. She was the bestest Huntress ever."

"Oh, really now?"

"Yep, and when I grow up, I'm gonna be a huntress too, and save everyone like the heroes in the stories. Just like Mummy."

"That's quite ambitious of you Ruby."

"What's ambitious?"

"Hmmm, ambitious is kind of like of like showing a strong desire to succeed, like how you seem to have a strong desire to become a huntress."

"Oh, so like how my sister always has a strong desire to help our dad?"

"I guess you could say that, yes. Do you know how to hold those properly?" Ozpin gestured to the now open Sai's.

"No, Mummy left before she could show me…"

"Would you like me to show you before you go?"

"Really? You would show me how to use them? I kind of remember that Mummy used to spin them and throw them but she always did it so fast that I could never see how she did it but with you showing me, then I'll be able to finally use them properly and-"

"Slow down little Ruby, you have to learn how to hold them first. You have to start with the basics."

"Oh, right, yeah… and then I'll be cool and spinny and flippy and it'll be so cool~…"

Ozpin chuckled at her day dreaming expression before snapping her out of it with a small smile, "Okay so we start with our fingers holding onto the handle like this and…"

Ruby had caught on rather quickly to the hand holds and how to swap between them, now casually spinning through the holds, a couple of missed grips because of how small her hands were in comparison but otherwise confident in her new abilities.

"So, Professor Ozpin?"

"Yes Ruby?"

"How did you do that thingy in the field with the blindfold today? It was so cool~"

"I like to call that class 'Spatial Awareness'. I'm trying to teach them how to be aware of all their surroundings by using their other senses. It will allow them to sense when something is coming up on them that they can't strictly see with their eyes."

"Like when someone comes up behind you and you can't see them?"

"Precisely."

"So, you were using your other senses to see where an attack was coming from?"

"Mmhmm"

"But how did you know where the ball was going to go?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I can get that you could sense who or where it was coming from, you could probably hear them or something but how could you know where it was going to go? You didn't just dodge them but you hit them back with your cane, so you must have known where they were going to go."

"My, you are a perceptive one, aren't you?"

"Perceptive?"

"You see far more than the average child, average adult at this rate."

"Oh… I don't mean to, I'm sorry…"

"No, it's nothing to be sorry for little Ruby. It's rare among many, even rarer to see it in a child, and to answer your question, I've had many more years of practice than any of them and I may have been using my aura a little."

"Your aura? How do you do that?"

"With enough training, any Hunter or Huntress can use their aura in many different ways aside from protection. I simply used mine to reach out and- well I guess, _see_ everyone else's. Each person has their own unique Aura and can sometimes leave a whisp of their aura on an object that they use it on, much like many of my students were."

"So, for the ones you could see the Aura on, you hit back and the ones you couldn't you just dodged?"

"Correct, though none of them have noticed this yet so maybe we can keep this our little secret?"

"That's so cool! Can you teach me? Please?"

"Only if you promise not to tell okay?"

"Okay!"

"But I'm not sure you're going to like it though Ruby, it's mostly just sitting down and meditating for long periods of time. And I think you should be getting back to your family now, I'm sure that they're worried sick about you."

"Yeah, okay…" she sighed, "my sister is probably ready worried about-" Ruby continued before getting cut off by Ozpins Scroll.

"Hello, this is Professor Ozpin."

"Hello Professor, I'm Officer Aqua, sorry to interrupt but I have a father and daughter at my station in Vale looking for a little girl in a red hooded cape. She had gotten upset and run away and was last seen boarding a bullhead to the academy and I was wondering if you had seen or heard of her so far?"

"Her name wouldn't happen to be Ruby, would it?" Ozpin asked, glancing at the now nervously shuffling girl beside him.

"Yes sir, that would be her."

"Oh, good then. Yes, I have seen her; she was waiting down in the main building for someone to take her back, would you like me to send a teacher with her back into Vale?"

"Yes, please sir, that would be greatly appreciated. Her family will be waiting for her at the docks."

"I'll send her now, thank you for the call officer."

"No thank you sir, her family will be very happy to see her, they've been worried sick about her."

"It's a pleasure to help, if that will be all?"

"Yes sir, thank you for your help Professor Ozpin. Have a good day."

"Good day officer."

Hanging up with the officer from Vale, Ozpin turned to crouch in front of Ruby again. "So, it seems I was right. Your father and sister went to the police in search of you. I'll send you back with a teacher to make sure you make it okay."

"Why did you lie?" Ruby asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Sorry?"

"You said I was waiting to go home, why didn't you tell them the truth?"

"Because while I try to encourage people to tell the truth, I don't think your father wants to know that you went wandering around a dangerous school by yourself and I'm sure that you don't want him to know that you've been practicing with a weapon he doesn't know you have. I think that it would be easier to just make up a whole new story, rather than try and fill in the gaps of the truth. Sometimes we have no choice but to lie to the people we love Ruby, just don't make a habit of it okay?"

"I'll try. Thank you for teaching me how to use Mummy's weapons."

"It was a pleasure, you're a very good student Ruby."

"Can I maybe come back again, please?"

"Only if you're not running away from your family again, okay? They do love you dearly, I'm sure."

"I know, thank you Professor!"

Before he could think, tiny Ruby had wrapped herself around him in a hug. Relaxing into it, Ozpin smiled softly and pet her head. "You're welcome Ruby, now off you go, before your family gets even more worried."

"Okay, bye, bye Professor!"

Hiding her mothers' Sai's back in her pockets and rocking back and forth on her feet, little Ruby blushed a little at how safe she felt hugging the tall silver haired man, a feeling she usually only gets around her Qrow. _'Maybe they know each other,'_ she thought as she got off the elevator and met a nice lady named Professor Peach who led her back to the Bullhead and took them back down to Vale city.

Upon landing, Ruby was immediately tackled by Yang and then dragged off the ship towards their father – a quick thank you sent to the nice lady professor before the Bullhead took off again.

"Ruby! I've been so worried about you! Don't you run off like that again, okay? Gah! I was so scared you were hurt or something…" Hearing Yang start to sniffle, Ruby immediately felt bad and leapt forwards to hug her sister.

"I'm sorry Yang, I didn't mean to upset you."

"Ruby?" She heard her father ask. Not wanting to see the disappointment on his face, Ruby turned but kept her hood up and head down.

"Ruby, please look at me sweetie… Petal-" Snapping her head up at her nickname, Taiyang looked on in shame as her surprised silver eyes were overcome with sadness, neither really knowing the last time they heard that nickname. Crouching low and his arms open, Taiyang waited with baited breath for Ruby to decide, and choked on the sob that rose from his throat in happiness as she flew into his embrace. Sadly, it was their first real embrace since Summer had died. They stayed like that for a long time, both a mess of tears and apologies but both just happy to be in each other's arms.

* * *

After that day, life at the Xiao Long/Rose house was better than ever, though it took a long sit down with both his daughters and lots of tears, but they got through it together, Qrow helping out when he wasn't on missions.

Ruby had been very excited to show her favourite person her new cape and waited up as late as she could for him to get home, falling asleep on though before he did.

Qrow, for all his manliness, found the sight of Ruby, curled up on his sofa chair and swaddled in her too big cape adorable and couldn't help the small 'aww' that escaped him. Nothing chased away the demons of a tough mission like a tiny, adorable Ruby curled up sleeping, having clearly tried to wait up for him. She was a ball of innocence and everything good in the world, and the fact that she bought a red cape because it made her feel safe was just the icing on the cake.

Hearing what happened just after she had bought it though, made Qrow want to reach across the table and throttle the other man, and would have if not for the miserable look already painted across his face.

"Please tell me you fixed it Tai. Please tell me she doesn't still walk around miserable because of the looks on your face."

"We've started but you and I both know that it's going to take longer than a few days to fix, Qrow, but dammit I'm trying."

"I know, Tai. I know." He sighed, taking a gulp from the bottle of Whisky he grabbed. "It's just that she's so smart Tai, and she catches so much more than you think. That kid is so special…"

"What do you mean?"

"What, like you haven't noticed. Ruby is much too smart for a motherless six-year-old- heck, any six-year-old and you know it."

"I know she's grown up fast but I thought she was fine. Yang's a lot more mature than she should be, I thought Ruby was just like that. Grew up a little too fast because they didn't have a proper home life."

"Tai there are plenty of kids with only one parent, and Ruby isn't just like Yang, she's passed Yang. Although she might act all happy and playful, she's kind of a lonely girl. You watch, when Yang is busy or doesn't need her and I'm 'busy' she'll hide somewhere and read a book, or fidget with her pockets or something. She doesn't go to the park or play with other kids, she'll hide away and play by herself. And trust me, keep an eye on what she's reading; it's nothing that a six-year-old should be able to read. I may have helped her learn to read and write but I certainly didn't teach her how to do it with both hands and she definitely wasn't at that reading level with me."

"She's ambidextrous? Since when? How? What-"

"Jeez Tai, you're worse than I thought. How have you not noticed this? She's your daughter for Christ sakes!" Not being able to stop himself, Qrow leant across the table and grabbed his friend by his collar, bringing their faces closer. "Do I seriously need to beat you up every time I come back from a mission to make you understand what you're doing?"

"No. it's been getting better lately, that day was just a minor setback."

"Minor setback." He scoffed, releasing his teammate. "You somehow managed to lose a six-year-old girl tripping on her own cape in the only major city you have. That was a major fuck up Tai, and your only lucky that she somehow made it to Beacon rather than the criminal district."

"You don't think I know that? I could have lost my little girl again and it was my own stupid fault. Yang has already shouted at me enough about it-"

"Well good, maybe now you'll see how much of a dick you've been and snap out of it." Not waiting for a response, Qrow took one last pull from the bottle before putting the lid back on and walking out, claiming to be going to bed and leaving the other man with his thoughts.

* * *

True to word, after watching Ruby follow Yang and Qrow around, Ruby would find a cosy little spot to hide in and read all different kinds of books; some were fairy tales and others were books about Dust. Those books she'd also take little notes of and sure enough, when one hand got tired of writing, she'd swap it all over and start writing with her other hand, the writing just as readable from both hands and she would keep swapping until someone called her name and she put her stuff away.

The only thing she did differently now though was that she would occasionally go for walks by herself around the house and yard, though she only really did that when whoever she was home with was asleep, because her entire family took far too many naps during the day.

Ruby had started using those times to practice her hand holds and the twirling, finding the motions relaxing and letting herself get lost in her thoughts as she mindlessly shifted through each hold, wondering about meditations and decided to ask her Qrow later. She almost got caught once by her father as she was out the front practicing when he got back from the shops. It was close but she had managed to mumble her way out of it.

Ruby had then also started asking Qrow about being a Hunter and how to meditate and what Aura does and how it works and everything she could possibly think of with her child like curiosity. It shocked him at first, but when she said that she wanted to be a Huntress when she grew up and _needed_ to know all of this information, he just chuckled and started explaining.

He covered how you can unlock your Aura and what you can do with it, saying that the best way to unlock it is to meditate and focus on making it bigger inside you and then let it develop and manifest outside of the body on its own. He did also explain that in rare cases, when someone truly needs their Aura, it can manifest to protect you but it's dangerous for the users as it drains them as they haven't prepared for it and can result in a great amount of pain and possibly cause then to fall unconscious; which, depending on the situation, could be a fatal mistake.

With a couple more questions and a thoughtful look, Ruby then wandered off to sit in her corner to think before coming back to ask him to teach her how to meditate. Yang joining in too when she heard how it helps activate Aura.

And so, started the lessons on meditation. While Ruby actually did it without much of an issue – much to the surprise of all as she was usually so jumpy and energetic – they all soon discovered her problem; she couldn't keep her hands still. Always fiddling with her cape or pulling at the grass, Ruby couldn't sit still without her hands moving. She had gotten used to practicing with her mother's Sai's during quiet moments that now it felt weird to be sitting down without them. It was an easy fix though when Qrow had randomly thrown her a couple of pens and she immediately started to spin them, calming down instantly and nothing but a quick 'huh' from Qrow was said on the matter.

Yang on the other hand was a mess, always fidgeting and shifting and moving around and complaining about how boring it was to just sit and listen and 'focus on your soul' and all that dumb stuff. The only times she was quiet was when she had fallen asleep, and it was only the knowledge that the more she meditates the stronger her Aura will be that she kept it up.

It was only after a couple of months during a session Ruby did by herself that she discovered her Aura had already been unlocked, along with her semblance too if the rose petals flowing away from her were any sign. Upon this discovery, Ruby raced up to her sleeping Qrow and told him. Shocked and still half asleep he asked her to show him, expecting to see maybe a glimmer of Aura but was snapped awake at the sight of her glowing dark red Aura which steadily grew bigger and brighter as the seconds passed and then after a minute, true to her word, Ruby started shedding rose petals that would disintegrate when they touched the floor.

"Well shit."

* * *

And so life went on, Qrow started to show Ruby how to use her Aura and together they experimented with her semblance, and not too long after discovering hers did Yang's Aura manifest and Ruby soon learned that she burned if she touched her sisters Aura. It was decided that Yang would work with their father as he too had a similar Aura.

Ruby and Yang had also managed to convince their father to let them have one fun day a month in which they could go into Vale together, which Ruby used to go and see Professor Ozpin, although it took a bit of convincing and bribing to make Yang let her go on her own and not tell their father.

"And why do you want to go to Beacon again?"

"Ummm, because I made a really nice friend there last time and want to go see them again."

"Fine, but I want to meet this friend too."

"No! You can't, he's my friend. I don't want you to meet him."

"Ohhhhh, so it's a guy friend, I see how it is. I thought you lo~ved your Qrow but maybe I was wrong~."

"Yang! It's not like that! I still love my Qrow, it's just that this friend is really cool and was telling me about spatial awareness last time and I want to know more. Can't you just go and watch a fight or something?"

"I could, but what would I get out of it?"

"I won't tell dad about that boy you brought home last week when you thought everyone was out. You know what the rules are about boys."

"Fine, you win. You can go and play with your 'Spatial Awareness' friend, I won't tell dad and you better not either missy!"

"Yay, thank you Yang, Bye!"

And so Ozpin would get a monthly visit from little Ruby and if Ozpin wasn't free, she would hang out with the lovely lady teacher from last time who apparently teaches a class on weapon maintenance and something else. Ruby never knows where Ozpin is on those days he isn't available but she usually doesn't mind because she gets to look at all different types of weapons and designs.

That was, until one day when a little eight-year-old Ruby really wanted to show Ozpin her new moves and decided to try and hunt him down using her Aura, trying to see where he was.

Finding him at the back of the school again with someone else, little Ruby races over in a flurry of rose petals and hides behind a bush again, being very careful not to make any noise like last time. Popping her hooded head up to see what was happening, Ruby stops short at the sight of her Qrow hugging and kissing her other favourite person, Ozpin.

Breaking away from their kiss, neither noticed the hidden girl whose heart they were breaking, too enraptured with each other; Qrow having just gotten back from a particularly tough mission. Leaning his head against Ozpins shoulder, Qrow sighs and almost just collapses onto his lover, Opzin's strength the only thing holding them up.

"Qrow? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine." He sighed, snuggling a bit closer, knowing that no one could see him. "I'll be perfect when I get back to Tai and the girls. There is no better remedy than coming home to Ruby's adorable face; she is seriously one special kid that one, and I think she has a crush on me which is both cute and weird but she follows me around like a lost duckling, it's frankly adorable."

Ozpin chuckles into Qrows hair, but stops, confused about something, "Ruby your niece? I didn't think Raven had two girls, I thought it was just Yang."

"Wow we did a good job then." Qrow mumbled, "No you're right, Raven only had one child. Ruby is Summers' little girl, walks around with a big red hooded cape. She says it reminds her of me and that I make her feel safe. I think she's only ever taken it off to shower and sleep; never seen her without it since she bought it."

"Summer had a daughter? How did I not know?"

"I honestly thought you knew. She ended up at Beacon the day she bought it, you got a phone call about her, sent her back down home on a Bullhead with Peach, how did you not see the resemblance? She looks just like her mother, it's why she ran away in the first place."

"Wait, that was her? I never saw her face, she had her giant hood up the entire time."

"Yep. Tiny girl, way too big red hooded cape and a far too curious mind? That would be her." He laughed. "She's the light at the end of all my missions, the reason I keep going out to fight the hard fight; because there is nothing like her adorable little form sleeping on my chair waiting for me to get back or that blindingly innocent smile she wears when she sees me at the door."

"She sounds like a true gift. I've yet to see her full smile, she still doesn't show me her face…"

"Wait, what? When would you have seen her again?" Qrow asks as he pulls away, looking up at his love in confusion only for the sae look to be painted on Ozpins face too.

"What do you mean? She's been coming to see me every month for the past couple of years, sometimes I'm with you so I miss her but she spends the day with Peach on those days. I thought her family knew…"

"Nope, smart though. She and Yang had bugged Tai to let them come into the city once a month for a fun trip, though they always just say that they looked at clothes and explored the city. No wonder it always sounded so boring, and if she's been with you then I can blame you for having to start her training this early, thanks."

"What are you training her in? And you are very welcome, she's a lovely student."

"At the moment, she's interested in the staff but she keeps saying that she wants a scythe like me. And to make it better, she's an early bloomer; activated her Aura and semblance about a year ago."

"She's so young, but she is a special one… How about we keep her little escapades a secret for now. If she doesn't want anyone to know than we can keep it that way, and you know that she is always safe with me."

"Yeah, alright, we'll keep her little secret. Now shut up and kiss me, I haven't seen you in ages."

Heart both warmed and broken at what she just witnessed, Ruby used her semblance to race back to the main building in search of Professor Peach; she had an idea that she wanted to talk about…


	2. Prologue - Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Introducing Ruby's morals and Velvet, and how the rest of the family reacts to the truth about what happened the night Summer died.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good day all!
> 
> Thank you everyone who has liked this story and thank you for the reviews, i try to read them and improve my writing with them but writing a developing Ruby was surprisingly difficult for me. I'm sorry that this chapter took so long but after uploading the first one I realised just how little was in this one and it took a while to come up with everything in a way that it would flow a bit better than it did. This is rather dialog heavy but it is 12,000 words so I hope you enjoy.

True to his word, Qrow never said a thing when he got back home the next day, and although Ruby was majorly upset with them both, she didn’t say anything about what she saw either. That didn’t mean that she had to like it, and it certainly didn’t mean that she had to be nice to them when she saw them.

Qrow was surprised at the change of attitude when he got back, having gotten used to having a red, child shaped shadow for the first few days after a mission, only to be met with a quick hug at the door before she went back to her corner to sulk.

Nobody knew what was wrong with Ruby and while they all had their guesses, none of them knew why she’d be mad with Qrow. Upset in general? That’s normal for a child her age, even if it doesn’t happen all that often, but to be mad at Qrow? It’s unheard of, and nobody knew how to handle it, Qrow most of all. Having just the day before explained to his lover that the young girl had a crush on him, it was confusing for him to practically be shunned at the door when he arrived home. A short conversation with an equally confused Taiyang didn’t help the man any as all the man could say was that she came back from her trip into Vale City like that.

She would still meditate and train with him and always followed his directions but she was almost cold with him. She wouldn’t try to hug attack him as she used to and she didn’t blush adorably when he’d praise her; she would almost flush with anger before storming off to practice with her Sai’s, trying to distract herself.

It didn’t work and only made her more upset to think about the other half of the traitorous, heartbreaking pair. She spun and swapped and tried miserable slashes at trees before she would break down crying, not understanding why nobody liked her.

A few weeks passed the same, only really training and eating with him before she would run away again, and it was only a matter of time before another mission would pop up for Qrow to leave on.

Qrow didn’t want to leave things the way they were and tried to talk to her before leaving only to be shut out, literally. She shut the door in his face after quickly giving him a goodbye hug; even if she was mad at him, she couldn’t let him leave without a goodbye hug.

With a sad sigh, Qrow left on his mission and prayed that it would at least be slightly better when he got back.

* * *

 

After Qrow left, Ruby had taken to following Yang around, hoping that she wouldn’t have to be alone. Yang was a little confused to begin with, not used to having Ruby so close to her for so long but decided to use that time to try and get her to make some friends.

Ruby would follow Yang to the park and due to the first time Ruby went to the park and accidentally broke a boy’s arm, she stuck very close to her sister.

The first time Yang showed up to the park with a Ruby shaped shadow, her friends immediately found the younger girl to be adorable and promptly adopted her into the group, making her the honorary little sister that a few of them didn’t have. It was Ruby’s first group of friends, and with her fear of getting lost in crowds – which happened many more times than Taiyang would like to admit – she stuck close to her new-found friends too.

It went well for the first few days she thought, but with her above average intelligence and lack of social experience, Ruby soon found herself not quite liking the group of older kids who thought she was too dumb to know about what they were talking about. That soon turned into a slightly bigger problem when one of her new friends said something about how their Aura was just a fancy force field that hunters use because they don’t really know how to fight.

“That’s not true. Your Aura is the physical manifestation of your soul. That’s why each person’s Aura is different, isn’t it?” Ruby said, confused at how someone could get that wrong. The older kids laughed at her and shook their heads at the smaller girl.

“Who told you that, Red? They are obviously not very good at their job.”

“My Qrow told me. He’s been training me and Yang and he’s the best hunter out there.”

“Your bird told you about Aura? No wonder you have it so wrong.”

“No! Qrow is my Uncle. Well, he’s Yang’s Uncle but that’s not the point. Qrow is the greatest hunter out there and he’s not wrong.”

“Sorry kiddo but your not-uncle is wrong. I would know, my dad is a professional hunter and he’s never used his Aura.” Hearing all the other kids ‘ooooh’ at the claim and Ruby just looked on in confusion.

“How did your dad graduate a hunter’s school if he never used his Aura?” Ruby asked with a slight tilt of her head, confused on how you can make your way through four years of training to be a hunter without your Aura.

“My dad didn’t need to go to a hunter’s school like everyone else, those places are lame and he already know everything there is to know about being a hunter, why would he waste time at a hunter school?” Another round of ‘ooooh’s followed this claim too and it was starting to become clear to Ruby that none of the others had a clue what she was saying either.

“Well that would make sense then, considering all the huntsmen academy’s training battles are judged on a person’s Aura levels. It makes sense that he managed to reach adulthood without using it. I do wonder though, is your dad still in one piece? Does he fight the Grim too or does he work at one of the guilds?”

“Why you little-” Seeing her verbal opponent leap over the table, Ruby jumped back and hid behind one of the other kids. Missing his target didn’t seem to deter the upset boy though, who leaped for her again, not even minding the fact that his attack knocked over another friend of his in his mission to hurt the younger girl. Seeing that he wasn’t going to give up, Ruby took one last look at the group before taking off for her home in an explosive bundle of rose petals.

Arriving home, Ruby raced straight up to her room with Yang to hide away hoping that nobody would question why she was home so early. Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on her side and just as she raced up the stairs, Taiyang had walked out of the kitchen and saw her go.

Knocking on his daughter’s bedroom door, Taiyang stuck his head into the room just in time to see the end of Ruby’s cape fall off the edge of the bed as she ducked down to hide under it. Sighing in exasperation, he quietly walked in and sat on Yang’s bed and waited for his youngest daughter to come out of hiding.

Ruby, upon realizing that her father wasn’t going away anytime soon, sighed and crawled out from under her bed to sit on the floor facing him with a sad and confused face.

“What happened today Ruby? I wasn’t expecting you home for another little while, and I thought you were hanging out with those friends you made, what happened?”

“I don’t know… I thought it was okay but then they were talking about Aura and I know a lot of stuff about Aura because Qrow has been teaching us and he knows a lot about Aura too, but then I said something and they all laughed at me and then I said something else and made one of them really mad – I think I may have insulted his father – and then he started leaping at me and chasing me around and trying to attack me so I ran home. I didn’t know what to do! I thought it was going so well…”

Not looking up at her father, Ruby curled up in a ball and rested her head on her knees and waited for some kind of reaction but flinched at the disappointed sigh he let out, just knowing that she let him down. _‘Why couldn’t I just be normal?’_

Hearing Ruby’s vague retelling of her day, Taiyang sighed in disappointment at the realisation that Ruby really wouldn’t be having a normal childhood with normal friends and relationships. A quick glance up at his daughters’ distraught face made him realise his mistake and rush over to his now crying little girl.

“Oh Ruby, no. Sweetie, I’m sorry, I’m not disappointed in you, never in you.”

“Bu-but, I’m never doing anything right, and-and keep mucking everything up and-”

“Ruby. You don’t muck anything up, just sometimes people don’t know how to respond to you. You’re a unique girl Ruby, and sometimes others aren’t going to be able to understand just how special you are but one day you will find the people that do. You’re going to make some really great friends someday and they will love every bit of you that your sister and I do.”

“Yeah, but that’s going to be ages away. What am I going to do until then? I can’t keep annoying Yang and her friends…”

“Well, why don’t we try and apologise to the boy you upset and go from there…”

As it turned out, after apologising to the older boy and making slight amends with the group, that the boy’s father did in fact lose sight in one of his eyes after battling a Grim and works as a bartender in the local Hunters guild on the island. Unfortunately – or fortunately, depending on how one looks at it – Yang was staying at a different friend’s house that day and so her relationship with the group wasn’t effected beyond what they all liked to say about the smaller girl when she wasn’t around.

From then, Ruby learnt what she could and couldn’t say around the other kids and just like her father said, she did actually make some friends that didn’t mind how outspoken she was sometimes about the things she likes, and they were only one year older than her, rather than two.

She did sometimes follow Yang to the park when her friends couldn’t play, and it was unfortunately one of those days that Ruby saw a bunch of older kids who had probably already started their training at Signal Academy, picking on a poor bunny faunas girl who seemed to be around Yang’s age. When she asked the group of slightly older kids if they should do something to help them, Ruby was confused when they all just looked at her funny and started laughing as though she was the funniest thing in the world.

“Little Red, why would we help that animal?” One asked through his laughter. With Yang in the bathroom and unable to help her, Ruby stared up in shock at the still laughing group before her.

“But she’s just like you and me, she just has a cute pair of bunny ears too…” She said and was confused when they started laughing harder, saying something about her being just a dumb little girl that didn’t know anything and how faunas are just animals.

Not being able to help herself, Ruby shoved past the person who was reaching out to pet her head before racing over to stand in front of the now downed faunas girl.

“Leave her alone! She’s done nothing wrong!” Ruby shouted at the much older kids, but whimpered at the angry looks they were all giving her. Acting quick, Ruby turned and helped the girl up and told her to quickly go to the bathrooms and find her sister Yang, the blonde with amethyst eyes.

After giving the description of her sister, Ruby watched as the girl nodded and raced across to the bathroom in search, and only just missed the punch that was thrown at her head. Her next few moments were spent desperately dodging all the punches and kicks they sent her way, and while she had been training at home a lot, her opponents were older had most likely started their formal training. In a moment of distraction, a quick punch slipped through her defences and while she tried to get her bearings back, a more powerful kick hit her in the side and sent her sprawling on the grass a few feet away. Not a moment later, a barrage of kicks was sent at the downed girl, a volley of insults to match.

Coming out of the bathrooms, Yang was suddenly faced with a bruised and desperate looking bunny Faunus asking if she was Yang. Not sure what was going on, Yang slowly nodded and was shocked when the new girl suddenly grabbed her wrist and dragged her to the other side of the park she was normally at, explaining in a rush what was happening.

With a gasp, Yang took off for the group of older kids who were by then circling her younger sister, their kicks and insults not slowing at all. With her fists ready and her Aura burning, Yang dashed forwards and upon seeing Ruby’s Aura finally shatter and the kicks starting to leave harsher and darker bruises, Yang lost it. As her eyes changed colour and her hair burned brighter than it ever has before, Yang charged for the now very close and unsuspecting group, knocking out the first two idiots with only one punch before turning and facing the last three with a malicious grin.

Between all the kicking and punching and dodging, the small fight had managed to drift over to a more open area of the park, away from her sister who was being cared for by the Faunus girl who had told her what was happening. One of the kids from Yang’s group of friends must have run off in search of her father when the first punch was thrown because when the last of the bullies finally went down and Yang was standing victoriously over her opponents, Taiyang was standing just across the playground, a terrifying glare on his face.

Not caring much for the amount of trouble she was about to get into, Yang took off at a sprint for the two girls now sitting on the ground; Ruby sobbing into the other girl’s lap as she gently pet her head, not knowing what else to do for the poor girl in pain.

“YANG XIOA LONG! Don’t think you can just run away from me!”

Still not listening to her clearly furious father, Yang skidded to a stop in front of the pair and gently pulled Ruby into her lap, wanting to be as close as possible to her injured sister. Ruby’s sobbing slowed down a little at the familiar feel of her sister and although she still hurt a lot, she was relieved to hear that Yang had taken care of the big bullies. She flinched again though at the sounds of heavy, angry footsteps approaching them and curled again to try and protect her possibly fractured ribs.

Seeing her sisters pain and fright, Yang tried to calm her father down before he did something that would hurt Ruby.

“Dad, I know what it looks like but you have to calm down a bit-”

“Calm down?! Really Yang? I just got dragged from my house because apparently you started a fight in the middle of the park! Why the hell should I calm down?!”

“Because you’re scaring Ruby!”

Hearing his daughters scream, Taiyang finally took notice of everything else around him and saw that there was now clearly three small girls on the ground instead of one, like he thought.

“Ruby? What the hell happened? Your friends told me you just raced at them and started beating them up.”

“Yeah well, apparently all my _friends_ are a giant bag of di-”

“Yang!”

“What? I’m not wrong. I didn’t start that fight but I sure as hell ended it but can we please focus on the more important parts here, like my crying sister?!”

Not waiting for her father to think of anything, Yang managed to get Ruby on her back, like a piggy back ride, and started towards her home, inviting the other girl to come with them as she was hurt too.

After getting girls cleaned up and Ruby to bed when she fell asleep, Tai finally got the full story from the remaining two girls, the Faunus girl, after revealing that her name was Velvet and that she was a _rabbit_ Faunus, not bunny, and what truly happened at the park that morning.

Even though she tried to stay as long as possible so that she could say goodbye to Ruby, Velvet had to leave before the younger girl woke up, but promised Yang that she would be in the park again the next day if they wished to meet up again.

Meeting up the next day in the park, Ruby and Velvet became fast friends, despite the gap in age, and the discovery that they both wanted to be Huntresses when they grow up sparked a new conversation about their interest in weapons and how effective each weapon would be in varying fights. Learning that Velvet was only in Patch for a holiday with her family and was set to leave the next day, was almost saddening for the younger girl and Ruby quite enjoyed spending time with the Rabbit Faunus, but with the knowledge that they’re both going to get into Beacon when they can, the two girls promised to write to each other before hugging each other goodbye.

* * *

 

As exhausted as the two sisters were, they were excited for their trip into Vale again, glad to be getting off the island and away from all the trouble they’ve stirred up. Ruby though, was scared to be going up to Beacon alone, and for the first time she asked Yang to come up with her to the academy on the bullhead instead of the two just going their separate ways once they got to the landing pads.

Knowing that what happened the few days before had really scared Ruby, Yang agreed and rode up to the academy with her, going straight back down into the city when she saw a familiar teacher start guiding her away.

Upon seeing Professor Peach waiting at the landing pad for her, Ruby was both glad to see a familiar face and slightly disappointed to know that she wouldn’t be seeing Ozpin that day. One look at Ruby’s face though, and the Professor explained that she had only come down because she heard what happened on Patch and thought she’d like an escort to the Headmaster.

Peach laughed silently when Ruby brightened and quickly pulled her hood up – it had become a running joke among the staff that knew of Ruby’s visits, that the headmaster was the only person who hadn’t seen her whole face. Although, the list of people at Beacon who knew of Ruby was very short, even Goodwitch didn’t know about the small girl.

Once they reached the main building, Peach left her young companion at the elevator and went back to her workshop to look over some of those ideas little Ruby had brought up; she’s a smart cookie that one…

 

The ride up to Ozpins office was longer than usual, or at least, that’s what it felt like for Ruby. She was fidgeting and bouncing and although she was still very upset with him at the time, she also really just wanted a hug from one of the people who made her feel safe.

Ruby’s visit that month was a little different to what usually happened. Even on days when they didn’t train, they would still sit and talk; Ruby was always excited to what had happened at the academy over the month, but not that day. After getting off the elevator to Ozpin on a call, Ruby silently walked over to him and climbed up onto his lap.

With his chair facing the windows, Ozpin didn’t see or hear her come in, so when she suddenly appeared in front of him, he was a little surprised. Letting out a small ‘hmmm’ to the person on the call, Ozpin nodded to the girl in greeting and was about to hang up when she started to his chair and sat herself down on his lap, her forehead resting against his chest.

Quickly ending his call, Ozpin put his scroll on his desk before gently wrapping his arms around Ruby, not quite sure why she was suddenly so tactile. Ruby had always been a rather physical person, hugging him and always being as close as she could but she had never just come in and sat in his lap without a word. Knowing that if she wanted to talk, she would, Ozpin just held the small girl close. After a while when she still hadn’t moved, Ozpin went back to his paperwork, understanding that she just needed to be close to someone she trusts.

They spent the whole day like that, Ruby relishing in the warmth and safety she felt with him and Ozpin quietly working through the piles of paperwork that had built up throughout the last week or two. At some point Ruby had fallen asleep, but Ozpin didn’t have the heart to move her, so he continued on with his Headmasterly duties, finally getting ahead on all that was needed. Thankfully, she woke up before she had to leave; Ozpin didn’t know if her could really wake her up just to tell her to leave. After waking up, Ruby just snuggled closer until she had to go, leaving with a quiet ‘goodbye’ before she made her way back to Vale and her sister.

Although neither of them spoke of what happened that day, Ozpin was secretly very glad that she thought he was someone she felt safe with.

 

After her quiet day with Ozpin, Ruby came to the realisation that the reason she was so upset with both of them wasn’t because one was stealing away the other from her, but that they had both been taken away from her, and she loved them both just as much as each other – or, as much as a child could.

Realising that, Ruby came to the decision that, just because they didn’t love her, didn’t mean that she couldn’t still love them. So, Ruby, having come to this agreement with herself to love them just as she always has, because she knows that she’s not going to have them forever. And so, when Qrow finally got back from his mission a week later, all was back to normal; the hug attacks and the three day shadowing mission she would set herself to make sure that he wasn’t hurt too badly, like he said.

Nobody really knew what changed again but they were all glad for it, especially Qrow, who missed the bright little girl who clung to him.

* * *

 

It wasn’t for another couple of years that something major happened in the family, with Yang having started at Signal Academy, Ruby didn’t go out much anymore, only going out if it was with her family or her few older friends who were starting to prepare for Signals entrance exams and requirements as they would be starting at the academy the next year. When she wasn’t out with friends, Ruby preferred to stay home, writing letters and talking with Velvet on their scrolls and training more and more with her Sai’s and staff, hoping to become good enough to get her Qrow to start training her with a scythe.

Although, after almost being caught a couple of times around the house, Ruby had taken to meditating with them in field she found in the forest behind her home. It was there that a little ten-year-old Ruby was practicing the slashes and stabs while trying to be ‘spatially aware’ of her surroundings when Qrow found her.

Having gotten back from his mission early, Qrow was almost excited at the prospect of being able to surprise Ruby as she somehow always knows exactly when he would walk through the door. He was disappointed though, at the knowledge that Ruby had gone out for a walk. Asking where she was didn’t help as Tai didn’t have a clue, saying that she took a different path each time, though after asking Yang, he got a different story.

“She goes into the woods to explore and find places to meditate and practice. I’m fairly certain she has a field somewhere in there that she’s claimed, don’t tell Dad though, he doesn’t like it when we go into the forest by ourselves, although Ruby does it all the time…”

“Thanks Yang, I’ll go looking for her, see if I can finally surprise her.”

“She’d like that, she misses you a lot when you’re on missions.”

“Yeah, I miss the pipsqueak too.”

“Not like that, but I guess you’ll find out eventually. Now go away, I’m trying to listen to my music here; your killing my vibe, old man.”

“Whatever Firecracker, I’ll see you later.”

Having got what he wanted, Qrow walked out of the house and took to the skies as a bird, searching for the youngest member of their family from above. After flying in large sweeping arcs over the forest, Qrow finally spotted the familiar red cape in an otherwise empty field, although she was not meditating or practicing with her staff like Yang thought.

Coming down on the opposite side of the field to her, Qrow perched on a low hanging tree branch, curious to see what she was doing.

Ruby, at the time, was practicing her slashes and more complex hand grips that she’d learnt, practicing at the air before moving on to the trees surrounding her field. At the same time, she was trying to be ‘spatially aware’ of her surroundings, keeping her eyes closed and other senses sharp, as she was well aware how much trouble she’d get into if she were caught.

After having torn up a couple of trees with her slashes, Ruby felt an odd presence at the other side of the field. Thinking it wise to make sure that it wasn’t her dad, she reached out with her Aura and found that it was just a bird; a bird with an unusual amount of Aura but a bird none the less. She was just about to focus back on her task at hand when the Aura around the strange bird shifted into that of a man and watched as he jumped down from the tree.

Shocked and more than a little freaked out, Ruby spun and – without opening her eyes – threw her Sai’s at the sides of the mystery man’s head; shock pinning him in place.

Ruby opened her eyes to see who was sneaking up on her, but was shocked to see someone familiar. Her Qrow was pale faced and staring at her Sai’s sticking out of the tree beside his head.

 “Ahhh Qrow! What the hick heck? Since when could you turn into a bird? I almost killed you! What-”

“You weren’t even looking…” Ruby was cut off by his mumble.

“What?”

Turning to face her, Qrow pulled both Sai’s from the tree before stalking to the confused girl. “You weren’t even looking in my direction and had perfect control, you knew exactly where they were going to go, you were never going to kill me and I would ask how but I have something more important to ask. Where did you get these?”

Looking up at him as he walked over, Ruby was getting more and more apprehensive with each step he took. At his final question, Ruby looked away and tried to think of an answer, not wanting to remember the night she got them. “Uhhh, well…. Ummm, I-I got them from…”

“Ruby.”

Ruby had never heard Qrow growl like that at her before and couldn’t stop herself from looking up at his face, and she really wished she hadn’t. He looked angry and sad and worst of all, he looked disappointed. She couldn’t handle it if he was disappointed in her and all she could think about was her Mummy, lying in red snow and the Grim and soon she was crying, silent tears rolling down her face.

With a sigh, Qrow crouched down and gently pulled her face up to look at him.

“Ruby, I’m not mad at you, I just want to know where you got them from. You do know who’s these were right?”

With a small nod and a sniffle, Rub looked up at her favourite person with a small smile. “They were Mummy’s. I think they were called RoseBud but I’m not too sure, it’s what I’ve been calling them.”

“Where did you get them from Ruby? How long have you had these?”

When all she did was shudder out a choked sob, Qrow grew confused and concerned, even more so by the answer he got. “Mummy gave them to me.”

“What? Ruby, Summer was out on a mission when she died, she had her weapons on her, how did she give them to you if- No…” One look at her face was all the confirmation he needed.

“You were there…” He breathed out, his heart breaking and his mind racing as she nodded her head. “How…?” Qrow could only watch as she broke down in his arms.

“I had a bad dream about this big bad man coming to hurt Mummy so I went out to look for her. I was walking for ages and fell in a bush when I saw her trip and fall and I think she called you but then the big scary man from my dream came and he stabbed her and then he was saying mean stuff and then when he left I crawled over and there was a lot of blood and she said some stuff about me being special and how my eyes were special and that she loves me and not to trust anyone with my eyes and then she gave me RoseBud and then she wouldn’t wake up and then there were grim and I was so scared so I screamed and then there was this light and then they were all frozen and I didn’t know what to do so I went back home to get Daddy but I was tired and cold and everything hurt and I fell asleep on the swing and then I woke up and Mummy was gone and I failed! I was supposed to get Daddy and I couldn’t and I – I….”

“No, Ruby, no shhhh sweetie, shhhh. You did everything perfectly Ruby, but that was a long way for you to run and you were on the swing when I got there and that wasn’t too long after the flash- oh god. That was you. That wasn’t Summer, that was you, Fuck!”

Hearing her whimper in fright, Qrow calmed down and looked at the tiny bundle of red in front of him. Seeing her distraught silver eyes, Qrow picked her up and started to walk back to the house.

“Come on, let’s get you home. We have a long talk with Tai ahead of us.” He sighed, and looked down when she whimpered and clutched RoseBud to her chest, retracting them and almost hiding them as she curled. “Shhhh, it’s okay. We’re not going to take them away, but you have to tell your father, okay?” Feeling her nod, Qrow speed walked the rest of the way back to the house, trying to calm her down as she sobbed and cried out for Summer; calling out for Tai as soon as they were close enough.

“What’s up?” He called, walking out the door, but upon seeing Ruby still sobbing into Qrows chest, moved out of the way and followed them into the living area.

“What happened? Is she hurt? Did you just come out of the forest? Ruby, what have I told you about going into the forest alone-”

“Tai, stop. She’s not hurt but what I’m about to say is going to be hard to hear okay? You have to calm down and stay calm. Promise me.”

“Okay, I’m calm, starting to get very worried but calm. I promise. What happened?”

Not knowing how to start, Qrow just grabbed the Sai’s from Ruby’s hands, quietly reassuring her that he’ll give them back before holding them out and opening them, watching as the polished metal folded into shape.

Before he could react, Tai had leant across and snatched them out of his hands with a shocked gasp. Immediately, Ruby started thrashing and crying, reaching out for her stolen weapons but shrunk back under her father’s glare.

“Where. Did. You. Get. These?”

“Mummy-”

“I know that they were Summer’s. Where did you get them from?”

“They were- Mummy-”

“I know that! But where-”

“Tai!”

Snapping his head to look over at Qrow, his initial anger faded at his teammates murderous expression. Looking at the hand he was holding out, Tai places the Sai’s in them and watches as he quickly retracts then and gently passes them back to Ruby, apologising for getting them snatched. As soon as they were back in her hands, Ruby curled around the handles, a small ‘my RoseBud’ whimpered out as she moved to protect them.

“Outside. Now.” Qrow orders as he cuddles Ruby to sleep.

Once the door had closed, Qrow punched him right in the throat and watched as he bent over sputtering and holding it, not giving in to the shocked and almost betrayed expression on his face.

“I told you to stay calm, like a god damn adult, you bastard. I know it’s shocking to see them, especially in her hands but that was uncalled for.”

Hearing Tai try and talk but choking, Qrow whips around and pins him to the wall by his already sore throat. “No, you’ve said enough, now you listen and you listen well. The reason she’s so upset now is because she told me after pining me to a tree from across a field with her eyes closed. She’s had those since Summer died and she’s been training with them for who knows how long. Those Sai’s are hers now, and you will not be taking them away from her again, am I clear?”

Receiving a small nod, Qrow steps away to let his friend breath. Hearing a scratching ‘how?’, Qrow sighed and sat down on the steps, pulling out his flask and gesturing for Tai to sit.

“You won’t want to be standing for this…”

* * *

 

Ruby woke up to Yang petting her hair, her head resting on her sister’s lap.

“Yang? What are you doing down here? I thought you went out with your friends?”

“I was back before Qrow and told him that you were in the forest. He really wanted to surprise you, I think he got something for us but that’s not important right now. I saw what happened when you got back, and I’ve been listening to Qrow tell Dad what you did.”

“Oh…. everything?”

“Yes, everything, and I am so sorry Ruby, that you had to go through all of that and that you couldn’t share any of it with me and-”

“Yang no!” Jumping from her position, Ruby tackled Yang in an emotional hug. “I’ve always had you and Qrow and – sometimes – Dad but I’m never alone Yang, never alone. Even if I’m kind of lonely.”

“So, you could have come to us if you wanted to?” Yang asked, tears in her eyes.

“Yes Yang, anytime – Ow!”

“Then why didn’t you! You dumby!”

Ow! Ow – Yang – sto- Yang!”

“You should have said something then!” She yelled, beating Ruby around the head with a sofa cushion. It went on for a few minutes until Yang paused in thought, “Wait, you pinned Uncle Qrow to a tree from across a field with your eyes closed? How did you even know how to use Mum’s weapons?”

“I may have been taking lessons with my friend at Beacon…?”

“Is that a question? Wait, I thought your friend was just a weird student. He’s not a teacher, is he?”

Looking down, Ruby mumbled out a response, knowing her sister won’t understand.

“Ruby.”

“He may~……. Be the headmaster…”

Grabbing Ruby’s face in her hands, Yang pulled the two together. “Did you just say the Headmaster?”

Ruby nodded slightly, her face squished and beginning to get a little worried at her sister reaction.

“As in, Professor Ozpin?”

“Is there another Headmaster?”

“Don’t get smart with me missy. You have apparently been getting private training sessions with the most powerful Hunter in Vale.”

“I have?”

“Yes! Oh my god I thought you were the smart one!”

“What? He doesn’t like talking about himself, we just train and talk about random stuff mostly. Although that does make sense, he really does know a lot about everything and he’s actually really awesome.”

“Oh my god…” Yang sighed, letting Ruby pull away and sit back on her own seat.

The two sisters talked for a little while longer, the conversation followed much the same; Yang remembering something she heard and thwacking Ruby over the head for it.

They both enjoyed sitting with each other like that, finally connecting with each other in a way they couldn’t before with such a big secret between them, but it was then that they promised each other that they would share everything with each other. From boys to petty friends and make up and all the hard feelings, Yang and Ruby made a pact to always be the best sisters to each other, ever.

After sitting with each other for a while, Yang decided to head back up to their room to listen to her music again, telling Ruby that maybe she should go and talk to their Father.

Watching her sister walk back up the stairs, Ruby tiredly stood up and went to look for her Qrow. Apprehensive about her Father, but with the knowledge that she’ll always have Yang and Qrow, she went to the back door just in time to see him storm off into the woods.

“He really does hate me now, doesn’t he?” she asked the now alone Qrow.

Snapping his head up at her question, Qrow took in the sight of her, eyes still red from crying and still a little sleepy, RoseBud still clutched in her too small hands at her side. Shaking his heads sadly at her timing, Qrow reached out and sat her in his lap, cuddling her close and trying not to let her see him crying, hiding his face in her hair.

“You know it’s okay to cry, right? I know I look a lot like Mummy and that you really miss her and I’m sorry that I hurt you sometimes when you look at me-”

“That’s not- I don’t-”

“Yes, you do, not very often but sometimes I’ll look up at you and you get this sad look and go up to your bedroom. I see a lot, I’m perceptive~.”

Hearing Ruby’s teasing tone, Qrow took her invitation to change the subject and asked, “Where did you hear that word, I doubt it was from around here.”

“Your boyfriend~” watching him sputter and choke on the mouthful of alcohol was kind of funny and she couldn’t help but giggle at his distressed face.

Qrow swallowed his mouthful and looked down at the giggling bundle of red on his lap, glad that she didn’t seem as upset anymore.

“I don’t not have a boyfriend, thank you very much.”

“Oh sorry, I guess I got it wrong again.” Ruby said trying to think of the right word.

Satisfied that she didn’t know anything, Qrow took another swig from his flask, only to choke on it with her next words,

“Oh, that’s it. Lover. He’s your Lover than? I don’t really understand the difference…”

“Where in the world did you hear that word?!”

“I think I saw it in a book or something. Is it just like boyfriends and girlfriends but for adults, because adults have a lot of weird words…”

“Yeah kind of, just don’t let your father hear you say that, okay? Think he’d have a heart attack.”

“So, Professor Ozpin is your Lover, got it.”

“And again, what? Where did you get that idea?”

“I saw you one time I went to visit him. I really, really wanted to show him some of the new moves that you had taught me so I searched for his Aura and found you two together. Also, I do not have a crush on you, that is absurd.”

“Oh~, big words there little red. So, if it isn’t a crush, what is it?”

“Love you dumby. I lo~ve you. And Ozpin.” She said in finality.

Not quite sure how to process what she said, Qrow just looked at her in shock, his silence making her lose her confident air as the seconds passed.

“What? I do. It’s a fact.” She mumbled down into her hands as they played with the edges of her cape.

“H-how would you know that? How do you know it’s not some hero crush thing or something?”

Not understanding where he was coming from, Ruby tilted her head in confusion. “Because it used to be a hero crush.” She explained softly, “But it hasn’t been like that for a while. I know what I’m feeling Qrow, I love you and I think I will forever, though the feelings for Ozpin were unexpected but he’s really nice and he’s been training me with my Sai’s and doesn’t baby me as much as you do. And he makes me feel safe, like you do. I may be ten Qrow but we all know I don’t act like it.”

“Yeah, I know, but you _are_ still only ten. You have your entire life ahead of you, why would you waste it loving me? Or Ozpin for that matter – and where did that even come from anyway? We are both way older than you –”

“Really not a good enough argument, I’ve seen your team photo and you haven’t aged much since it was taken; dad has, but you haven’t and we both know that Ozpin doesn’t age so I’m assuming that he’s helping you. I figured it out the first day I met him, I really liked his hair.”

“Well damn, okay. But still, why me? What do you see in me that you could possibly love?”

“I have a lot of reasons, I could list it if you want. You’re kind and amazing and you’re always supportive and protective and an amazing teacher and you always hug me when I need it – actually, you always know what I need. You make me feel safe; that’s why I have my cape, so that I will always have you with me, even when I become a huntress and go off on my own.”

“What makes you think that you’ll be alone when you become a huntress? You’re in a team at the Academy’s.”

“Well yeah, but you do secret solo missions so I can’t go with you and your going to be with Ozpin when you get back because you won’t have to look after me and Yang anymore so I can’t annoy you then and I’m not very good at interacting with people so I don’t think I’m going to make many friends and what friends I do make won’t be able to stay with me because there are still people out there that want to hurt me because of my eyes just like Mummy said and I still don’t know who that Hazel man was or who ‘Salem’ is, and as long as we’re both alive, my friends won’t be safe.”

Again, not knowing what to do, Qrow went through his thoughts slowly.

“Okay, you need to listen to me carefully Ruby. Firstly, just because you and Yang will be older doesn’t mean that I won’t have time for the two of you-”

“But why would you want to spend time with us when you don’t need to?”

“Hey, don’t interrupt me. And I do it because I want to, not because I need to-”

“But you could be spending so much more time with Ozpin if it weren’t or me…”

“What did I just say about interrupting, huh? Shush now, anyway, Ozpin knows that I need to be here – no, you shush – and we are both okay with what we have. I also enjoy spending time with you and your sister, it’s nice to spend time with my family – oh stop that, you. I know that I’m not your uncle but the world doesn’t and we’re going to keep it that way. Onto other things though, Hazel and Salem are far bigger than you could ever imagine, and there are people fighting that battle already. If you live your life constantly afraid, you’re not going to lead a very happy life.”

“Like you?”

“What?”

“You don’t live a very happy life.”

“What makes you say that? I have all you guys, that makes me happy.”

Ruby said nothing but lifted the flask she had grabbed from his hands when he wasn’t looking and waved it in front of his face. Sighing, Qrow snatched it back and put it away, grumbling.

“Perceptive alright.”

“Why do you both underestimate my imagination so much?”

“Huh?”

“You and Ozpin. You’ve both assumed that I can’t imagine what it is you’re hiding but I’ll have you know that I have a very large imagination. I can in fact imagine a war, not between the Human and Faunas – although I’m sure that’s coming again – and not just against the Grim either. I don’t know who ‘Salem’ is but I know she’s bigger and scarier than anything you’ve ever met.”

“And what makes you say that?”

“The look in your eyes every time I say her name.”

“Well damn, you are good, but you’re still young; even if you’re a little special.”

With that, Ruby just snuggled into Qrows chest, resting her head right over his heart and just rested there thinking about everything else she’s been trying in the woods.

“Qrow, what do you know about the silver eyed warriors?”

“Only the stories, do you want to hear them?”

“No thank you, I’ve already read them all, I just wanted to know if you could help with some of my tests but that’s okay.”

“Ruby.” Gulping at his tone, ruby realised her mistake. “What tests?”

Pulling away from the hug, Ruby went back to fidgeting with her cape while she tried to think of an answer. “Funny thing that… I, uh, may have been playing with my powers a bit…?”

“What! How? Even Summer couldn’t manage to really test her power without it blowing out of control. How has nobody noticed yet?”

“Uhhhh, because I have a lot of spare time, a forest and a lot of training in Aura?” Ruby tried to guess, but the bland stare he was giving her made her cringe and start babbling as she usually does when nervous. “I don’t know! I just know that Mummy said not to trust anyone with my power so I thought that meant I had to learn to control it but then I thought that, you know, it’s not very secretive if I keep bursting light out of my eyes so I thought that if maybe I could channel it through something else it would look less obvious but I was wondering if you knew anything else about it to help-”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.” He cut off her ramblings with a hand covering her mouth. “You figured out how to channel your power through something else? By yourself?” At her hesitant nod, he continued, “What through?” At her confused look, elaborated. “You channel your power through something. What are you channelling it through to release the power?” She shakily held up the retracted Sai’s with a hopeful look. “Oh, so that’s why you’ve been getting Ozpin to teach you how to use them, huh?” At another hopeful nod, Qrow sighed and pulled his hand away. “So, how’s that been going for you so far? Anything work?”

“Well, I can channel it easily enough, it’s just like moving your Aura around with a bit more of a push-”

“Which is not something that many Hunters know how to do-”

“Shush-“

“Ha ha.”

“-but it still looks like raw silver power when I releases, which is going to be a problem because that’s not normal and I already have a semblance so I was just starting to think about using dust crystals to both enhance and disguise it, as I can make a related glyph to match when I use the dust and the power combined.”

“You are far too smart for a ten-year-old, you know that?”

“Yes, I do. It’s why I don’t have many friends, but that’s okay, I won’t need many when I start going to Signal.”

“That’s still two years away Ruby, what are you going to do until then?”

“Train with you dumby, you’re gonna teach me how to fight with a scythe like you!”

“Oh, really know? And what’s wrong with RoseBud and a staff. That’s two whole options right there.” Qrow tried to convince, knowing that Taiyang would likely kill him if he started to teach her how to wield a scythe. A terrifying image of a slightly older Ruby tearing through a pack of Beowolves with a scythe appeared in his mind, making the man shudder in freight. No scythe for Ruby; much too dangerous.

“Nope, that’s only one. I’ve been planning with Professor Peach how to make them fold up and connect at the base to make a staff. I also want to try for Dual Blades too but I’ll have to wait and see.”

_‘Crap.’_ “Ambitious of you-”

“I know what that means!”

“-quit interrupting me pipsqueak-”

“Hey!”

“-and can I ask why you want to add Dual Blades? You haven’t tried anything to do with them yet – that I know of – so I can’t see where this is coming from.”

“Oh, I saw one of the student fights at Beacon and one of them had Dual Blades and they just looked so co~ol!”

“Finally, a normal childlike reaction-”

“And it would give a longer reach with a blade that the Sai’s can’t do-”

“And back to logic, weird child-”

“IT WOULD ALSO make the whole weapon heavier too, which would be good for if I had to transition between RoseBud; a lighter weapon, and a scythe; a not so light weapon. It would be easier to adapt-”

“Big word there Red-”

“-to a scythe from the Sai’s and back if they were closer in weight.” Ruby finally finished with a glare.

“You really have your heart set on a scythe, don’t you?” Qrow sighed, realising that maybe he won’t actually have a choice in the matter.

“Yep! They’re so big and cool and have an even longer reach and then I can be just like you.”

“Heh, you’re too cute sometimes kid but fine, I’ll teach you how to wield a scythe-”

“Yay!”

“But you are not getting your own until you get into Signal.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. I am not having a ten-year-old walking around with a scythe! You can wait like everyone else to make your weapon in school. You’re already ahead with the Sai’s and Staff, no more advantages.” Chuckling at her pout, Qrow just pulled her in for another hug, sighing happily when she snuggled closer.

“But Ruby, seriously, are you okay? You’ve been through so much already and I still cannot believe that you unlocked your Aura, Semblance and eyes in one night and are still alright.”

“I’m not though, am I? I’m not like the other kids, I don’t know how to play normally. I like reading my stuff by myself…”

“And that’s fine Ruby-”

“It would be if I didn’t remember everything I read and saw and felt…”

“Ruby, what-”

“It’s called Eidetic Memory, I searched it up one time. I can remember the exact dates you left and returned on all your previous missions and what injuries you had. I can remember just how red Mummy’s cape was in the snow that should have been as white as her hood but it wasn’t.”

“Jeez Ruby…”

“I can even remember how amazing it was to see your cape flutter in a wind that wasn’t there when you saved us when I was little and I can remember how you beat up Daddy when you thought we were sleeping when we all got home and how much he cried when he said he couldn’t look at me…”

“I knew you saw that but Ruby, that was years ago!”

“I know! The only thing I don’t remember is how I ran back to the house that night, I don’t remember how I got there, or into my bed or-”

“You unlocked your Semblance Ruby. I saw that flash that night on my way to the house, there was no other way that you could have made it to the swing and pass out before I could even see it without your Semblance, I’m just sorry that I didn’t see it before.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, oh. Now come on, off to bed early for you I think. We’ve had quite the day, haven’t we?” Qrow said as he stood, still holding Ruby and walked back into the house.

“Does Daddy hate me now? Knowing that I left Mummy like that… I left her alone and then she-”

“No Ruby, he doesn’t and you didn’t leave her to die and you know it. I know it’s painful Ruby, but you watched your mother die and you couldn’t have done anything to stop it. Stop lying and blaming yourself for everything, I’m just amazed that you’re still alive after all that happened that night.”

Helping the now silent Ruby into her pyjamas, Qrow watched as she put her cape back on and curled up in her bed, cape and blanket covering her and both her hands holding RoseBud close to her chest. Thinking she was asleep, Qrow was just about to leave when she called out in a sleepy voice,

“Hey Qrow?”

“Yeah Ruby?”

“Can we please not tell Ozpin about this?”

“Why?”

“Because I really like him as he is, I don’t want him to change just because of this, I was fine before, I’ll be fine after too.”

“Okay Ruby, it is your life after all, we won’t tell Ozpin until you want to.”

“Thanks.” Thinking that was it, Qrow leaned down and kissed her forehead and was just at the door when she spoke again. “And Qrow? You should totally spend more time with him, have like a sleepover or something… ooh sleepovers sound like fun…”

Chuckling at her sleepy mumblings, Qrow bid her goodnight and closed the door, heading back for his perch on the outside stairs to wait for his teammate to return, only to find him sitting there already. Pulling his flask out again, Qrow takes a long sip before sitting again.

“This entire family has horrible timing.”

“Hmm?”

“Ruby came out as you stormed off.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, and I just put her to bed. Again, horrible timing.”

“Yeah, we do, always too early or too late we are… I still can’t believe it. She saw everything – how did she even get out of the house, Yang and I were sitting on the sofa-”

“I know what you two can be like, nothing short of a Grim attack would have pulled you away from the screen.”

“And that just makes it worse, doesn’t it-”

“No, it makes her smart. Did you know she has Eidetic Memory? I didn’t, she just told me. Her eyes must have triggered something because she can remember everything from that night onwards and we haven’t noticed. She’s smart Tai, far smarter than we’ve been giving her credit for…”

“Geez… what are we going to do?”

“She wants to be a Huntress, so I’ll teach her how to be a Huntress. She’s got her heart set on a scythe though so that’s going to be fun...” At his teammates slight glare, Qrow held his hands up in surrender, “I tried to talk her out of it, I swear.”

“What about the Sai’s and the Staff, haven’t you been training her in those?”

“Yep, and I said that too. Apparently she wants to make the Sai’s fold up and connect to make a  staff and she wants to add Dual Blades too.”

“Shit.”

“Yep, and she still wants to learn how to wield a scythe, came up with some pretty good reasoning too. She’s annoyingly smart.”

They both sighed and looked at each other before taking a swig of Qrows flask each, setting it down in the step between them. With another long sigh, Tai just looks up at the ceiling before glancing out at the starry sky.

“Of course, she wants to be just like you. You know she loves you, right? As in Lo~ve Love.”

“What are you, twelve? And where did you get that idea? I thought it was just a hero crush thing that’ll fade!”

“I may be a sucky father but I do still notice these things, like my little girl falling in love. And I think it was a hero crush to start but then the awed looks turned into adorably fond smiles and little blushes when you’d pet her head. I think she honestly loves you with all her little heart, just try not to break it.”

“I think I have already a little but she seems fine. And she was just telling me that she loves me. Didn’t want to believe her, though she is far too smart for her own good. You know she thinks she’s going to be alone when she becomes a Huntress? No me, no you, no Yang, no friends, no team, just her against the world. She thinks we won’t want to be around her if we don’t need to be. The world has done a number on her and I don’t think it’s going to stop anytime soon…”

“And I don’t think I’ve been helping any either.” Tai sighed, stealing another sip from Qrows flask.

“She’s also been playing with her power too, don’t know for how long or when but apparently she’s started to use dust crystals to disguise the raw power when it releases. She’s got a lot of brains that one…”

“Yeah, one got the brains, the other got the brawn.”

“How is Yang doing at Signal by the way? Started many fights?”

“Started three, ended five; the other two was because one looked like a Rabbit faunas they made friends with and the other looked like Ruby, both were getting bullied when Yang came upon then and ended it real quick. She got detentions for those but I don’t like to count them, especially if the kids were so weak they went down with just a couple of hits, they deserved it.”

“Heh, you’re right about that. Firecrackers got a protective streak, shoulda seen that one coming. Lord have mercy when Ruby starts, that place is going to be a nightmare.” Qrow chuckled, thinking about all the trouble they’re gonna get into.

“Hey, at the rate you’re going, you might be teaching there too.”

“What makes you say that?”

“That scythe that she’s going to be walking around with without someone to teach her how to use it.”

“Well damn, shoulda thought that one through.”

“Yep, she’s got you trapped; Hook, line and sinker.”

* * *

 

With a little push from Velvet, who was getting the brunt of just how bored Ruby was starting to get at home with nothing but training and reading as, by then, all her friends were deep in their training for the entrance exams into Signal, Ruby too applied for the exams into Signal for the next year. Velvet had found in her academy that if you can pass all the exams and physical tests that all the other future students do, the admin will give you a few additional tests to make sure that you can keep up with the workload. If you can pass those, you’re in, and can start with the rest of the year level.

Unfortunately for everyone else involved, Ruby applied and sat all the normal and additional tests they required and surpassed everyone’s expectations. Apparently, she was intellectually on her sister’s level as a second-year student but Ruby declined and explained that what few friends she had were going to be in that level and that she wanted to start at the beginning, just like everyone else.

It wasn’t until the end that Qrow and her father found out, much too their charging and the sisters delight. Tai had actually only found out when he opened the letter to him from the Academy, congratulating him on Ruby’s early acceptance.

“Ruby!” He called into the house.

“Yes Daddy?” He heard as she came running down the stairs.

“What is this?” He asked, holding out the letter for her to read.

“Ummm, well, it says congratulations so-” She cut off with a gasp and tore the letter from his hand, quickly reading it over before squealing in delight. “I did it! I did it! I made it in! Yes! Ah my god! Yay, yay, yay! I’m going to school and starting my training properly! Yes!” She yelled, bouncing around the lounge before stopping suddenly and taking off for her bedroom she still shared with Yang.

Tai quickly followed after her with a small smile, she hadn’t been that excited in a very long time. “YANG! I made it! I’m going to Signal too!”

Jumping up from her bed, Yang raced over to meet her sister and read the letter too before squealing in delight, tackling her sister in a tight bear hug. “Oh my god! We did it! Yes, go Ruby!”

Tai watched from the doorway as they hugged and squealed and shouted, jumping around the bedroom and over the furniture. He was glad that they were both so happy but soon his brain caught up with what his ears were hearing.

“Wait WHAT!” He shouted, and watched as the two girls looked over to their father, his angry expression a clear sign of how much trouble they were in.

“Oh, oh.” The sighed together.

 

Sitting on the couch with her sister, Ruby mindlessly pulled out RoseBud and started spinning the handles idly – much like she would with a pen – looking over at her sister with a worried face and jumped when the door opened and Qrow walked through. She was about to jump up and run to him but a swift glare from her father kept her in place.

Stepping through the door, Qrow expected to hug attacked by Ruby but was confused by the lack of red anywhere. Walking through the doorway and into the lounge was even more confusing; Ruby and Yang sitting on one side of the lounge, Taiyang on the other side, holding a letter and glaring at them.

“Well this is tense… he drawled and watched as the two girls flinched, huddling towards each other.

“So, did someone die or…”  Tai just held out the letter he was holding and waited for Qrows reaction.

“Congratulations on Ruby Rose’s advanced admission to Signal Academy – wait what?”

“It came in today. Apparently, she has already taken all the tests and done the interview and got everything signed off. She starts at the beginning of the new school year with all the other students; a level below Yang and a year younger than all her soon to be classmates. Apparently with the help of a certain someone to sign off all the paperwork in my name.”

“Well damn girls, I’m impressed-”

“Qrow.”

“-and so deeply disappointed that you would go behind our backs and do such a thing, truly terrible.” He ended with a wink and chuckled at the resigned sigh from Tai.

“You were no help at all.”

“What did you want me to do, it’s already done. She’s enrolled and going, you can’t just pull her out just to make her wait a year. She’s already bored now, what else am I going to teach her now that the academy won’t?”

“Yeah but I just wanted her to with her own age group-”

“So I can be picked on for being smarter than them all? I know I’m not going to be making a lot of friends with everyone a year older but I already have some that are starting next year too, plus I’ll be able to fit in better with us being closer developmentally wise. Also, holding me back will not do anything good, at least this way I can start my formal training with proper teachers and lessons and curriculums.”

“Yeah, yeah kid, don’t use too many big words in one go, you’ll fry his brain. And we both know you want to start early so you can finally get your own scythe.” Qrow grinned as she flushed in embarrassment and folded out Rose and pointed the tip at his throat.

“Shush you, I’m trying to sound smart here.”

“Ruby, put it away. I’m not going to pull you out, you make a good point, I just wish you had told me…”

“You would have stopped me and I really, really want to go.”

“Yeah fine…” he sighed and gave her the acceptance letter, smiling softly when she squealed again quietly.

“Now you,” He said, glaring at Yang, who tried to look confident but her grin faltered. “How long have you been forging my signature on official documents?”

“Hehe, well you see, ummm…”

“Yang.”

“A while. But only on the good stuff I swear, and Ruby knew too!”

“Oh geez, lord have mercy on Signal and my career with you both going – hey don’t you laugh, your teaching too now. I’ll have you know that someone has to teach Ruby.”

“Ruby.” He groaned, flopping down onto a seat.

“Sorry!” she squeaked.

* * *

 

The next 4 years were a mess of Ruby outsmarting her classmates and Yang beating up anyone who spoke bad about her sister. They had somehow gained the name ‘The Sinister Sisters’; whenever one sister was hurt that wasn’t in class, the other would be right around the corner, ready to wipe out whoever brought harm to their only sister. No one ever figured out how they always knew when one was hurt, but they did and everyone soon learnt no to mess with them; Yang’s malicious grin and Ruby’s bright red hood that was always somehow up and her scythe out being the last thing any of their victims saw before they were inevitably knocked out.

And if there was one thing that everyone also had to know about the pair before doing anything in the school, it was that they don’t like bullies. They somehow managed to end so many fights with bullies and made such a reputation among so many of the victims that a small club was formed, in which they would all help each other train and defend each other from any more potential bullies. Yang would sometimes go and help them from time to time but Ruby chose not to, not liking all the attention she would get and not liking the socialising aspect of each meeting.

Ruby would still go up and see Ozpin on one day each month, sometimes even sneaking up twice or three times a month if she was bored or upset about her friends or other kids at school as she got older and was allowed to venture into the city more and more. Though she kept her hood up each time she went, mostly just because she found it funny how he would sigh in exasperation every time she would show up with her hood covering her eyes. Surprisingly, besides a few of the admin and Professor Peach, nobody else had found out about her trips and she decided that she wanted to keep it that way, practicing with her Semblance and how sneaky she can be and her infiltration skills.

Professor Peach helped her in all her adventures to update and transform RoseBud into something more, all the while growing closer to the teacher as they spent for time together, the Professor turning into something of a step mum to the younger girl as they would sometimes sit and have lunch together when they didn’t want to work on the weapons.

In her last year, Ruby learnt that Velvet had made it into Beacon and had an amazing team, so on the days when she wasn’t usually up in the city, Ruby got to meet the rather famous first year team; Team CFVY. It tuned out that Team Coffee was amazing in every way and made great friends, even if things were a little awkward to begin with. Coco and Velvet would go shopping with her and Yatsuhashi and Fox would train with her and on occasion when the team needed to study for an upcoming exam, Ruby would chill in their room and help them study, getting a slight head start on the content.

Ruby had also started to go out into the forest for small hunting missions with Qrow. When they first started, Qrow would fight with her, allowing Ruby to experience what fighting a Grim would be like but making sure that she was protected from the others in the pack. As she got older though, it turned into Qrow scouting from above and Ruby facing the small hoards head on.

Although Taiyang didn’t entirely approve of their hunting trips into the forest, he couldn’t exactly do much to stop them and it was that attitude that allowed Ruby to go out even without Qrow sometimes, which lead to the large pack of Beowolves ahead of slightly older girl, taking up all the space in her favourite field. Hearing a crow cry not too far from where she was, Ruby smiled slightly at the return of her favourite person before shooting off in a flurry of motion at the now raging pack of Grim.

From his new perch on a branch looking over the field, Qrow sat silently and watched as Ruby ripped through Grim after Grim with deadly aim, utilising every aspect of her weapon in the fight, and grinned to himself when she was thrown back and stood on her dug in scythe. After that moment it was difficult to keep track of her movements, the trail of limbs and rose petals being some of the only clues as to where she had been when she suddenly took off through the pack in a burst of red rose petals.

Looking at Ruby as she stands at the opposite end of the field she started, bullet casings and Grim limbs raining down around her, Qrow is suddenly reminded of that image that ran through his head when he first thought about training her with a scythe. _Scary Ruby._  

Those trips didn’t happen very often; having a Hunters Academy on an island limited the amount of Grim one could find, but when they did, it was always a good test of how much she had improved and what she still needed to work on. Sometimes though, she would use those hoards to test her powers on, experimenting with what they could and couldn’t do to both the Grim and the surrounding forest. Those attacks only happened during the holidays, when most of the families left the island to go stay somewhere else while they have the time before returning back to the academy.

While Ruby excelled in all her combat classes, it turned out, Ruby powered through her year levels school work in half the time as well, and started working on the next levels work too in each subject she approached. While they offered again to move her up a level, Ruby just wasn’t comfortable with all the trouble it would make for her and the few friends she did have. So, Ruby would do both lots of work studying with her friends for her year level and then with her sister for the next. The system worked perfectly as she went through her school years until the end of her fourth year, at which point she had learned everything that the school had to offer and neither party knowing what to do with the situation.

That was all solved when one night at the beginning of the next year, when Ruby stopped a robbery in her favourite dust shop and finally met the infamous Glynda Goodwitch and Ozpin finally got to look Ruby in eye…


	3. Chapter 1 - Getting into Beacon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby meets Ozpin without her hood and gets into Beacon. And we finally see some RoseBud action.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I just want to say thank you to everyone that has followed and favourited this story; it is getting so much more love than I had ever hoped. I do apologise for the delay in the posting, and I cannot promise that I will post regularly but I can promise that I will put all my effort into it - outside of my studies. So without further adue - Ruby meets Ozpin!

 

Dust Till Dawn was a small company, with only a few stores around Vale, which sold a variety of products, from magazines to ammunition for the variety of weapons that Hunters carry. It also happened to be Ruby's favourite store from which she sourced all her Dust.

Ruby preferred the smaller Dust companies like Dust Till Dawn in comparison to the larger corporations like the Schnee Dust Company because of both their slave labour and their questionable at best business partners, but also because the bigger companies process and handle the Dust too much before it gets to the store and is far weaker and lower quality product than what Ruby needs.

Dust Till Dawn is a more local company with its own smaller mine which, at a higher price and by special request, supplies Ruby with raw Dust crystals straight from the earth. It took her a few years to realise, but she learnt that the less a crystal is handled, the better it reacts with her silver eye power – both being raw and purely natural power that Ruby can control and use.

It was getting late one night and coming back from spending the day with Team CFVY, when Ruby decided that she would stop off quickly to stock up on her Dust Crystals and Powders. Although she uses pure crystals for her Sai's, Crescent Rose only required the appropriate magazine to fit her sniper compartment, which she was not so slowly using up with all the spare time she'd been having lately.

After requesting her usual amount of raw crystals from the owner, Ruby made her way to the back of the store, knowing from experience that he had to take his time and be careful with them, the crystals being highly sensitive and sometimes volatile. It usually takes the man about 15 minutes to gather them all and package them right for travelling, so Ruby just liked to browse the shelves and read through the new magazines he had. It was there, in the back of her favourite store with her headphones on and reading the newest edition of Weapon's Weekly that the poor unfortunate thug tried to rob her.

Feeling a harsh tap on her shoulder, Ruby turns slightly from her magazine to see some tall guy in a black suit and red tie gesturing to his head. Pulling her headphones off, Ruby quickly takes in the long-bladed weapon in his other hand.

"Yes?"

"I said, put your hands in the air. Now."

"Are you... robbing me?"

"Yes!"

"Ahhhh." Ruby nodded in understanding and not a moment later, roundhouse kicked him in the side, sending the thug flying into the adjacent shelf. Seeing the thug get back up again, Ruby kicked him straight in the chest, sending him down the aisle. Seeing another thug coming at her with a gun, Ruby pulls out Crescent Rose and swings its compact form up between his legs before using her Aura to leap off the floor and tackle him, sending them both through the front window of the store.

Realising that one wouldn't rob a store with only two men, Ruby stood and let her scythe unfold. Reaching out with her Aura to check how many men she would have to deal with, she also felt the somewhat familiar Aura of one Glynda Goodwitch just around the corner. Although she had never met the woman, she did know that she was Ozpins right hand woman and if she got her attention then maybe she could wiggle her way into Beacon; she just had to show what she was capable of.

With that thought in mind, Ruby quickly planted the tip in the road and put away her headphones; they were a gift from Coco and she really liked them. Looking into the store, Ruby recognised Roman Torchwick from the news and Juniors men from when she met with Yang in the City the week before.  _'Three men, single weapons and not the best thugs. Roman Torchwick, known criminal, unknown weapon though.'_

Suddenly her thoughts her interrupted by all three men coming at her together, and knowing that they aren't the greatest fighters, built to scare not kill, Ruby made sure that while her movements were showy, they wouldn't harm the men too badly. An unkind, double legged kick to the face for one, the blunt side of Crescent Rose to the stomach for another and after getting shot at by the last one, a leaping whack from the blunt end again to the head took them all out.

After landing steadily on her feet, Ruby looked up to see Torchwick stomping out his cigar with his cane. Litterer.

"You were worth every cent, truly. Well Red, I think we can all say that this has been an eventful evening, but as much as I'd like to stick around this is where we part ways."

Realising what was going to happen as he raised his cane, Ruby aim below her and shot, jumping just above the explosion as he shot at her.  _'You have a shotgun in a cane, how cute.'_  Not seeing him when she landed, Ruby looked around and spotted him climbing the fire escape of a nearby building. Checking on the store owner quickly and promising to be back, Ruby chased the slightly famous criminal onto the roof.

"Hey!" Ruby called, gaining his attention and at the annoyingly grumbled, "Persistent." Ruby grinned. "Among other things." She agreed. Her grin fell slightly at the familiar sound of a Bullhead and they both watched as it rose from between the buildings. Frowning as he jumped up onto the platform, Ruby aimed her scythe for his leg, the shot just missing as the Bullhead tilted.

"End of the line, Red!" Ruby just rolled her eyes at the frankly terrible pun as he held up the red Burn crystal, throwing it down at her and aiming his cane at it. Realising what he was about to do and knowing that Goodwitch would intervein, Ruby reached forward and grabbed the crystal just as he shot. Feeling the shockwave of his shot hitting a barrier, Ruby grinned and pocketed the crystal, listening as his excited shout cut off. Ruby watched as Goodwitch sent purple orbs of energy at the Bullhead, each hitting but not damaging it.

As the Bullhead started to drift away, Ruby watched as the Huntress sent another wave of magic, this time using Ice Dust as a hail storm formed below a magic circle in the sky, shards of ice shooting down and piercing the ship.

Ruby thought they would leave as Torchwick ran into the cockpit but was surprised when a woman came out and started attacking, her clothes lighting up with Dust as she shot some kind of lava looking liquid at them, the splatters exploding once they touched the ground. She could only watch though as a massive arrow shape was formed out of the rubble and shot at the ship, shifting and changing shape as it would get shot at by the mystery woman. Thinking they were finally getting somewhere when the ship was tilting and getting constantly attacked, they were both surprised when the mystery woman let out a burst of energy, magic circles wrapping around her and destroying the connection Goodwitch had with the rubble.

Realising they were running out of options, Ruby started to shoot at the ship, though her bullets weren't doing much against the metal and all her shots at the woman were being somehow absorbed into her hand. Seeing the small circles of heat forming on the ground surrounding them, Ruby leapt out of the way just in time, though she could feel Goodwitch's semblance helping her away, sending her off balance and crashing into the ground. Climbing to her feet, Ruby could only watch as the Bull head closed and flew off.

Not even glancing at the older woman, Ruby turned around and jumped back down the building, letting her Aura take most of the impact from landing and walking back to the shop owner, returning the only stolen Dust crystal.

"I'm sorry for breaking your window, I got a bit carried away." Ruby apologised as she handed back the crystal and helped move the thugs all into one area so the police could get them.

"It's alright, I'm just glad they didn't manage to take anything which would be all thanks to you. And this is the order you asked for, I put in a couple of extra's and it's all free."

"Oh no-"

"Take it, it's a thank you for not letting me be robbed. Plus, you're such a wonderful customer and sweet girl anyway, you deserve a treat." The old man said, cutting her of and practically shoving the package into her arms.

Ruby rushed forwards to give the old man a quick hug. "Thank you very much, and it really was no problem. This is my favourite store, I can't imagine what I'd do if you closed because you got robbed."

"Well, I shouldn't be closed too long and hopefully I'll be back before you need any more Dust. Now I think that Huntress lady wants to talk to you, she's been frowning at you this whole time." A quick glance over her shoulder confirmed his statement. Glynda Goodwitch was getting ignored and she wasn't happy.

Another quick thank you and goodbye to the store owner and Ruby was making her way across the store and out the door to face the unhappy Huntress. As soon as she was close enough, Goodwitch snatched her package out of her hands. "I am confiscating this and taking you into the police station. You have some questions to answer."

Not at all impressed with the snatching and rude behaviour from the woman, Ruby crossed her arms and huffed, warning the Huntress to be careful with them as they were volatile and that she wanted them back, before following her into the car and down to the police station.

Ruby was again unimpressed to learn that she would also have to hand over any weapons she had on her, and because they didn't know about RoseBud, she kept them hidden in her pockets and signed over her scythe and Dust package, again warning people that it was volatile.

Sitting in a chair in the interrogation room and hearing the door slam, Ruby jumped slightly. The adrenalin from the fight and confidence she had, quickly leaving her.

"I hope you realise that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, young lady." Glynda said, pacing back and forth across the room. "You put yourself and others in great danger."

"They started it." Ruby defended, and she wasn't wrong.

"If it were up to me, you'd be sent home… with a pat on the back, and a slap on the wrist." Goodwitch said, watching as Ruby looked hopeful for a second before flinching away as the riding crop hit the table in a quick slap. "But, there is someone here that would like to meet you."

Ruby was confused for a second before she saw a very familiar silhouette approach the table.  _'Oh no…'_ Ruby frantically tried to think of anything to try and cover her face but gave up in seconds, knowing that there was no getting out of Ozpin finally seeing her eyes.

Ozpin, for his part, was both excited and concerned about finally see Ruby's whole face as all Glynda told him was that she had been involved in a robbery. Stepping into the room, Ozpin first saw her eyes, which were anything but a normal colour.

"Ruby Rose, you… have silver eyes."

Not quite sure what he was doing, Ruby leaned away slightly from his very close face and tried to look at anything but him. "U-umm-"

"So, where did you learn to do this?" Ozpin cut her off, nodding to the footage Glynda was playing from her Scroll.

Very confused about Ozpin was playing at, figuring that the cat was out of the bag and Goodwitch was going to find out about her visits to the academy, Ruby stuttered out her response, not once taking her eyes off her other favourite person. "S-signal Academy."

"They taught you to use one of the most dangerous weapons every designed?"

Still not sure what Ozpin was doing but playing along anyway, Ruby answered. "Well, one teacher in particular."

"I see." Ozpin said, placing down the plate of chocolate chip cookies, the kind that she taught him how to make as a kid because they were her favourite and wanted them at the time. Ruby cautiously reached for one, eating it in one go, before quickly stuffing a small hand full in her mouth. "It's just that I've only seen one other scythe wielder of that skill before. A dusty old Qrow…"

Ruby almost choked on a cookie as she heard that, laughing to herself at the prospect of calling that to his face. Choosing to stick with the annoying plan, Ruby cleared her throat before responding. "Sorry. That's my Uncle Qrow, he's a teacher at Signal. I basically begged him to teach me because it's just soooooooo cool and now I totally kick butt and look amazing too."

"So I've noticed. And what is an adorable girl like you doing at a school to designed to train warriors?"

Ruby had to fight back the blush she could feel rising when he called her adorable, focusing instead on answering the question. "Well, I want to be a Huntress."

"You want to slay monsters."

"If that's what we're calling them, then yeah. I want to apply for Beacon soon, you see, my sister is starting there this year and she's trying to become a Huntress and I'm trying to become a Huntress because I want to help people. I mean, the police are alright but not for what I want to do with my future and nowhere near as exciting, you know?"

"Do you know who I am?"  _'Is that a stupid question? Yes. What are you playing at Ozpin?'_

"You're Professor Ozpin. You're the Headmaster at Beacon."

"Hello."

"Nice to meet you."

"You want to come to my school?"

"More than anything." And she meant it, training at Bacon would be invaluable. And it would mean that she wouldn't have to wait around for a year to apply. Watching as he glanced up at Goodwitch as she scoffed, Ruby's hopes were rising quickly.

"Well, okay."

* * *

Although Qrow can't respond to messages while he's on a mission, Taiyang, and sometimes Ruby, would send him some. While Ruby just liked to send him adorable messages wishing him luck and telling him that he's loved, – those always somehow manage to come right when he's at his lowest and needs them the most – Tai sends him updates on the major events at home, or sometimes just likes to rant about Yang getting in trouble again.

He was just arriving back in Vale City again when he got one such message, though this one was much more worrying. 'Ruby's at the Police Station.' Reading the message quickly, Qrow immediately took off for the main police station in the city, hoping that she was okay, especially with her track record for having never gotten in trouble.

Arriving at the police station, Qrow perched himself on a branch outside the interrogation room he found them all in, sighing in relief at the sight of Ruby unharmed; and apparently getting herself into Beacon. Seeing that she was okay, and leaving the room, Qrow slumped down onto the branch in exhaustion, having flown the whole way back himself.

Ruby bounced down the hallway of the station, signing to get her package and Crescent Rose back before continuing on her way out, happily humming at the thought of her new school.  _'Beacon! Finally. And I'm going to be with Yang, oh all the trouble we'll be able to get into together!'_  Stepping out into the fresh night air of Vale City, Ruby took a deep breath in, checking her scroll to see that it was getting super late, and huffed at how much her father was going to worry and freak out, certain that he had already been informed that she was at the station. Just as the thought of calling him crossed her mind, her scroll rang, her father's face on the screen.

"Hi Daddy."

"Ruby, are you okay? They said you were let out. What the hell did you do?"

"Nothing! Well, kind of something but it wasn't bad, I was in my favourite shop when it was getting robbed and kicked their butts, I just happened to catch the eye of one Glynda Goodwitch."

"Ruuuuby…" Hearing her father groan, Ruby just grinned, knowing that while he didn't approve, her Qrow certainly would.

"Yes Daddy?"

"Just come home already, it's almost 11 o'clock. Do you need me to pick you up?"

"No, I'm okay. I'll see you soon."

"Okay, I'll see you soon. Try to not start any fights on the way."

"Yeah, yeah. Bye Daddy."

"Bye Ruby, be home soon."

Chuckling to herself, Ruby put her scroll away and closed her eyes, stretching her arms above her head to release all the tension that had built throughout the night. Hearing something shuffling around in the tree beside her, she reached out with her Aura to see what it was, only to find her favourite person jumping around the branches as a bird. Opening her eyes quickly, Ruby looked up and smiled up at her Qrow. Seeing his exhausted form slump back down on a branch though, her smile faded into a worried frown but a quick glance behind her to see Ozpin waiting by the doors eased her worries, knowing that he'll be with him soon and that Ozpin would surely take care of him. Looking back up, Ruby smiled softly at him and held out her arm, hoping that he'll let her do at least that for him.

Having seen and heard her conversation with Taiyang, Qrow started to get up, readying himself for the flight up to the academy when he saw her smiling up at him. Knowing he was caught, Qrow just slumped back down on the branch, too tired to bother trying to fly away quickly. Watching her hold out her arm for him after glancing back at Ozpin, Qrow knew what she was going to do and couldn't think of a reason not to let her and so, he jumped off his branch and gently floated down to land on her wrist, careful not to scratch her.

Silently very pleased that he decided to let her help, Ruby pulled him close for a quick second, kissing him on the head before making her way back to Ozpin. Ruby giggled lightly at his shocked expression when she held her wrist up to his shoulder, allowing Qrow to jump across with minimal effort. Running a light finger down his head, Ruby quietly told him that she'd see him tomorrow before turning around and skipping off down the road.

Both men watched as she skipped off as if nothing happened before looking to each other. Feeling Qrow just shrug at him, Ozpin sighed and started making his way back up to his office, letting Qrow rest on his shoulder all the while, knowing that he must be extremely tired if he hadn't moved himself.

Finally back on campus and in his office, Ozpin watched as Qrow hoped off his shoulder to float over to the sofa in the corner of his office, turning back into a man just in time to face plant to cushions with a long groan.

"Are you okay Qrow?" Concern painted Ozpins voice as he made his way across the room, quickly placing his jacket, mug and cane at his desk before making his way to the sofas. Hearing a muffled response from the man on his sofa, Ozpin gently nudged his lover over, moving to sit at the end with his head in his lap. "Qrow, are you hurt?"

"No… Just tired." Qrow mumbled out from his now very comfortable position, curled around the very familiar and warm lap, nuzzling closer.

Hearing that, Ozpin let out a relieved breath and started running his fingers through the almost feather like locks in his lap. "I didn't expect to see you at the station, thought you'd just come up here and sleep first."

"Tai sends me messages to update me, on my missions. I never respond but it's nice to know what happening if it's not too serious a mission. The last one just said that Ruby was at the police station, I was very worried."

"I was too when I heard she was at the station, Glynda called me."

Rolling slightly to look up at his lover, Qrow frowned in thought. "Yeah how did that happen anyway?"

"Apparently Glynda was in the area when she noticed the commotion and had to save Ruby from getting blown up by a burn crystal."

Rolling back to rest his nose against Ozpins hip, Qrow was steadily falling asleep but the thought of Ruby messing up with Dust just didn't make any sense. "That doesn't sound right, Ruby's amazing with Dust… maybe I should watch the footage… you do have that right?"

Listening to his lovers' sleepy mumblings, Ozpin chuckled and agreed before telling him that perhaps tomorrow would be a better time to watch it. "Come on you, let's go to bed. You need some sleep."

"Lots of sleep."

"Yes, lots of sleep. Come now…"

After basically carrying the man down to his rooms and putting him to bed, Ozpin was quietly sitting beside his now sleeping lover, lost in thought.  _'Ruby Rose, daughter of Summer Rose, of course she has silver eyes.'_  Realising that he couldn't do anything about it, Ozpin finally lied down, wrapping his arms around Qrow before drifting off to sleep.

* * *

After sleeping for almost 12 hours, Qrow woke up to an otherwise empty bed and a note on the other pillow, instructing him to meet up in Ozpins office when he finally wakes.

"Stupid, dominating asshole. Where else was I gonna go, the beach?" He grumbled to himself, slowly getting out of the amazingly comfortable bed and shuffling towards the connected bathroom, choosing to have a nice long shower before putting up with Glynda as she was most definitely going to be there.

It wasn't until an hour later that the elevator doors opened to the freshly showered Qrow, lazily slumped against the back wall. Casually walking out into the massive room, Qrow was surprised to see that Ozpin was alone but shrugged and made his way over to the desk, perching himself on the edge, next to the chair.

"Good afternoon Qrow, did you have a good rest?" Ozpin asked mildly, glancing at him out of the corner of his eye before going back to his paperwork.

"Perfect. It was long and undisturbed."

"That's good. Glynda isn't here at the moment so we will have to debrief a little later but for the meantime, would you like to explain to me why you never told me Ruby has Silver eyes?"

Realising that Ozpin may be a bit upset at him for withholding something like that, Qrow rubbed at the back of his neck awkwardly before admitting the truth, "At first I figured that if she hadn't taken her hood off with you yet, maybe she didn't want you to know but then some things came up and she made me promise. Also, have you got that footage of her fight? I think I asked for it last night but that's all kind of fuzzy and I want to check something quickly."

A small 'hmmm' in acknowledgement of the answer and confirmation, Ozpin reached over and handed Qrow his scroll, opening the footage and letting it play, watching as his lover starts chuckling at the very beginning of it.

"I knew it didn't sound right, Ruby is basically a master with Dust by now, there is no way that she would let herself be blown up by a crystal of all things. She knew Glynda was watching, and dumbed herself down, majorly. That and, if you watch to right before they get in the car, Ruby gave that Crystal back. She grabbed it before it could get shot."

"What?" Pulling his attention away from the frankly boring paperwork, Ozpin leaned over to re-watch the footage, looking closely for what might give away that she noticed the Huntress. "The only thing I see is right at the beginning before she turns her headphones off…"

Chuckling, Qrow hands back the scroll as his now confused lover watches and re-watches it again, listening to the random mumblings he makes to himself. "She played you both like a fiddle. All of  _that_  is her showing off. You know that I taught her to be a bit of a show off, but you taught her to be quick and efficient. She could have ended it the moment it started but noticed Goodwitch and decided to play around a bit. You taught her well, but that other lady at the end was an unexpected twist…"

Taking back his scroll and placing it on the desk, he agrees. "Yes, we aren't quite sure who she is or what she can do…" Still hung up on the fact that Ruby didn't want him to know about her eyes, Ozpin turned to look up at his partner, hurt eyes searching for an answer. "Does she not trust me…?"

Realising that they weren't talking about the mystery woman anymore, Qrow just sighs and looks out the massive windows. "It's not that she doesn't trust you, Ozpin – a lot of stuff came up a few years ago – it's just that she didn't want you to change. She loves you, you know."

"What? I thought she had a crush on you, when did I come into this?"

"Sometime before she turned 10."

"Again, what?"

"I caught her training with her Sai's one time when she was about 10 – and thanks for that – and we had a talk. Apparently she saw us one time when she was younger and it turned out that she loves the both of us. How do you not notice these things, I thought you were the smart one?"

"I haven't been able to see half her face since I met her Qrow, but is that how she knew that you would be going with me last night?"

"Yeah, she knows that I always spend my first day back with you before heading home, she just saw that I was really tired last night otherwise she wouldn't have said anything. Secrets are her most powerful weapon."

Ozpin sighed in disappointment, knowing that she was only 15 and was already wary of the world. "You said she didn't me to change, why would I change?"

"Ruby really liked what you two had together and if you knew what I know, you would have changed, seen her in a very different light and that I can guarantee. We all changed, how we saw her and how we saw what she can do, it really does make things different and she didn't want that with you. She was scared, but she's older now, and maybe if you ask she'll tell you. So much is changing now anyway, what's a little more?"

Ozpin was silent for a few moments, his thoughts trying to straighten themselves out but there was a very a large hole in them, a blank space of knowledge that he didn't know about. Knowing he won't like the answer, Ozpin quietly enquired, "You're not just talking about her eyes anymore, are you?"

Qrow just sighed and looked back down into the eyes of his lover. "No, I never was. Ruby's been through and seen far too much of the world – more bad than good – and she grew up too quickly. She's so much more mature now, too much for a 15year old girl."

"But she's so innocent with me, always happy and smiling or grumbling about school and stupid boys and going shopping with Team CFVY. She's so normal up here…"

"And that would probably be why she never told you. This is her escape, her safe space to be whoever she wants to be. She knows that when she's with you she is safe and she can just enjoy her time. When she's at home, she's training and studying and focusing because if she doesn't, she will lose and losing for her is not an option."

"I can understand that, I guess, but can you answer me this; does she know what her eyes mean?"

Qrow just shook his head and sighed, "I can't tell you that either, I promised her but I won't lie. But you already know what that means."

"Yes, I do. I understand that you can't tell me, I would not be able to break her trust either…"

"Thank you for understanding. I-" Hearing the elevator ding in warning, Qrow cuts himself off and stands, walking to lean casually on a pillar just as the doors open.

"Ah Qrow, how nice of you to finally join us." Glynda blandly stated as she walked out of the elevator, not even turning in his direction to greet him.

"Glynda, good day to you too. So nice to see you this fine morning."

"It's afternoon."

Pretending to check a wristwatch he doesn't wear, he agrees. "So it is."

Choosing to ignore him, Glynda stood before Ozpins desk and briefly went over the tests that their new student would have to take so that she could determine what level of schooling she was at and how much work she would have to do. She also suggested to send some basic study packs for the level she should be moving into, to get her started early on all the catch-up work she would have to do.

Qrow, having flopped himself onto the sofa in the corner again, listened as she listed off subjects and tests that Ruby would have to do. "And here I thought that you knew everything, Goodwitch."

Sighing in frustration at being cut off, Glynda turned to face the surprisingly not drunk, drunkard in the room. "Oh?"

"She's already done those subjects, and the year above too I think. Do you know nothing of the girl you just let into the academy?"

"I've requested the information from Signal but it's the holidays so they haven't gotten back to me yet. I am just preparing her for Beacon according to her age, but if you know so much 'Uncle Qrow' then what should I be putting in here?" Glynda questioned, already tired of his know-it-all grin.

"Nothing."

"Excuse me?"

"I mean, besides the usual information package that her sister already has, nothing. Ozpin didn't just let her in because she's good and has potential – although with the training she's had, that would certainly be enough too – Ruby is academically at the level of the incoming first years. She started a year early at Signal and has been doing a year ahead of that too the whole way through her schooling. Her acceptance into Beacon is actually solving their main issue, as Ruby has already gone through all that Signal can offer. This way, she can graduate and keep going, rather than graduate and wait a year to be allowed in as usually academies don't allow early entrances." Qrow explained, flopping onto his back and closing his eyes, not needing to see the gaping fish face that Glynda would surely be wearing.

"But- what? Why have I not heard of her before? Surely such a prodigy would have been flaunted around-"

"Ruby doesn't like the attention she brings. She never participated in competition's or anything so there really isn't much of a reason for many to know – except for those who went to Signal, but they don't actually know her name."

"I- how would I not know about her? How did you know about her?" Glynda turned to face Ozpin who up until then, had been silent.

Ozpin was about to answer when his scroll started ringing, Peach's face appearing on the screen. "Professor Peach, what can I do for you?"

"I heard that Ruby was coming to Beacon with the new fist years, I wanted to make sure that it was true or if people were just spreading rumours."

"You have heard correctly, though I'm not sure how, as I accepted her last night. But yes, Ruby will be starting with all the other first years coming in this year." Ozpin answered with a small smile, and watched as the normally very subdued professor started to jump around in excitement.

Spinning in excited glee, Peach grinned when she caught Qrows lazy figure in the background of the screen. "Oi Qrow! Nice to see you're back in town again. Can you tell Ruby for me that I'll be taking her out for lunch this week instead of our usual picnic? She deserves a treat, and tell her I'll pick her up from the landing docks."

"Or you could tell her yourself Peach."

"Thanks Qrow." With a quick glance to make sure that he agreed, Peach quickly said goodbye, saying that she left some of the machinery on in the workshop and just wanted to make sure that she heard right when the whispers started.

And just like that, the cat was out of the bag. Glynda just stood in front of the desk, stumped at both the discovery of someone else knowing about this child and at being ignored. "How does she know who Ruby is?"

"Peach and Ruby are actually very close, practically family at this point. They go out for lunch every other week if they aren't looking over weapon designs in the workshop." Ozpin casually informed the now growling woman.

"She's been on the campus?" Glynda was seething. How dare they keep something like this from her?

"Many times."

"And she just walks in whenever she wants?"

"Effectively."

"And somehow nobody knows?"

"Well Delilah knows, she was the first to meet her as a child."

"Then how did she meet Professor Peach?"

"I introduced them; Ruby was very interested in weapons so I took her to the workshop. Peach took quite a liking to her and took her in – she's almost like a mother to the girl now."

"And how long have you known the girl?"

"Since she was about six."

"And nobody thought to tell there was a child just wandering around."

"Considering you never managed to notice the child in a massive red cape, I'd say that was your own damn fault."

"Qrow, butt out of it."

"Just saying."

"I think it was something of a game to start with and then turned into more of a test to see how good her skills were at being undetected. I think she did a marvellous job, we've had many conversations with her hiding around the room."

"WHAT?!"

"Ah yes, but never mind that now. We should just get that information packet ready and Qrow can take it back with him tonight. Now, onto other things, with the inclusion of Miss Rose we now have an even number of students that can be split into teams of four which is very helpful…"

Huffing in boredom at the change of topic, Qrow dozed on the sofa for the rest of the day listening to the other two try and organise an entire school. After debriefing when they finally pause in their organising in the afternoon and realising that he wasn't going to get anymore alone time with Ozpin, Qrow decided to start heading back to Patch, glad to be heading home, finally.

* * *

"Qrow!" Preparing to be pounced on, Qrow was confused and surprised when Ruby fell on him from above, rather than the usual sideways attack attempts. "What the-"

Looking down from her position on his shoulders, Ruby leaned over to look him in the eye. "Hi."

"Hi. Where did you come from?"

"I jumped off the roof. I learnt a new trick with my semblance and it turns out that I can fly with it."

"You can what now?"

"Yep. I haven't had much time to play it yet but when I turn into the petals, I always thought that they were limited to what  _I_  as a human could physically do but then I was thinking about the fact that my human body can do a lot more than just a bunch of controlled petals, soooooooo what if my controlled bunch of petals can do more than what my measly human body can?"

"That's one hell of a thought you've been thinking there Rubes."

"I know, but besides that. Hi!"

"Hi. Again. And congratulations on getting into Beacon, Peach says that she's taking you out for lunch this week to celebrate instead of the picnic and that she'll pick you up from the landing pads."

"Ooooh lunch. And thank you. I mean, it wasn't how I imagined getting in but yay!"

"Yeah, yeah, come on. I have your very own intro to Beacon package to go through."

"Okay!" Floating down around her love like scattering rose petals, Ruby fully formed just ahead of him and started skipping back to the house, immensely pleased with her new discovery and excited to see what life at Beacon was going to be like.

* * *

The week leading up to their first day was a mess of emotions and kind of just a mess in general. With both girls madly packing and trying to figure out what they would need and Taiyang almost sulking in the lounge as he watches both of his little girls getting ready to leave, Qrow spent most of the week being the help; making sure that the girls were packed and ready and just refilling the glass of occasional alcohol for his depressed friend.

Ruby, having been friends with Team CFVY was extremely helpful in the preparing, making lists of everything they would need and racing around the house in a ball of happiness and petals.

"Ruby, you need to slow down before you destroy the house." Qrow called from the backyard as he saw her blur past him and into the house, all the furniture swaying as she passed it.

"It's fine-"  _CRASH_  "Oops."

Qrow just chuckled and went back to his weapon maintenance; it had been a habit since they started school to make sure that the whole weapon was clean right before and after a mission. Something he was highly grateful for as many Huntsmen had failed missions because something was stuck in their weapons and they didn't clean it. Although cleaning through the whole of 'Solas', which is what Ruby liked to call it, is a long process that included pulling apart the inner clockwork mechanics.

Feeling the wind of Ruby rushing past him again, Qrow just sighed and finished with his cleaning, packing away his gear before reaching out and catching Ruby around her middle as she tried to speed past for the third time.

"You seriously need to calm down a bit kiddo. There isn't going to be anything left in the house at the rate you're going."

"I can't, I'm too excited to just sit still and do nothing, I've already packed mine and Yang's bags and cleaned Crescent Rose and RoseBud and read through everything and I don't know what else to do."

"Why don't we go for a hunt? Never hurts to practice and if we get lucky, you can use the last of your Dust in RoseBud and can start the school year with fresh Dust." He said, jumping up from the ground and letting her go, watching as she pulled out the two handles and checks the Dust crystals and powder capsules, nodding in agreement.

Through the years of training with RoseBud and planning with Peach, the traditional fold out Sai's had turned into so much more. The outside of the handle had been split into eight sections on each side, each section holding a small but powerful dust Crystal or capsule of Powder, one of each type on either side of the handle. They had to make the handle longer to fit them all on and to accommodate the extra metal that was added for the Dual Blades that they extend out into and the staff that they also form when connected at the base, the polished metal automatically forming a cylindrical shape when they were. Once the handles were finished, they reached to be the whole length of her forearm, and with the Dust in them, they looked like beautiful jewelled hand grips, and nobody was ever any wiser about them.

"If we get a good hoard of them it should use up the last of them. But it'll have to be big, I'm low on all of them but that's still a lot of power to try and use."

"Sweet. Do you want to just use them or take Crescent Rose too?"

"RoseBud should be enough, I need to practice with my close range more anyway."

"Alright, you tell Tai and I'll tell the Hunters to bugger off."

With a quick nod the two separated, Ruby going inside to tell her father that she was going hunting for a few hours and Qrow calling the Hunters Guild to tell them that the forest was going to be theirs for the rest of the day and to keep Hunters out of it. They mostly do it to keep anyone from seeing Ruby using her Silver eye power but it also means that there is more Grimm for them to hunt down. Not ten minutes later did they get confirmation that the forest was theirs for the day and the pair took off, one racing through the forest and the other flying above.

As usual, Qrow scouted ahead, keeping an eye on Ruby but mostly looking out or the larger packs while she would handle the smaller groups she would run into, slicing through them with barely a lag in her momentum.

Taking off from the house, Ruby extended her handles as far as they go, the long edge quickly shifting out into twin blades, the silver blades shining softly in the sunlight as she raced through the trees, slicing straight through the necks of the few Beowolves that she came across, her Dual Blades slicing clean through the flesh as she ran under them with a quick flick of her arm before taking off again. Making sure to keep Qrow within her sight, she ran slightly to the side as she heard a couple more smaller groups of Grimm, Ruby quickly deterred form the main path she was running to slice through the centre of an Ursa, quickly glancing at the remining three before bouncing off the fading Grimm and stabbing the closest one through its head, pulling the blade down to slice open its head. Quickly transforming RoseBud into Sai's, she threw each one at the last two, hitting both perfectly through one of the eyes and into the skull, killing them instantly.

Quickly retrieving her weapons, she sent a burst of Aura into the Wind crystal, a white glyph appearing just above her head which she jumped up onto and once activated, shot into the air. Once up, Ruby spun quickly to see where Qrow was and promptly used another Wind glyph to send her flying in his direction, turning into her petals and spiralling through the air, the wind carrying her along above the forest.

Flying along, Qrow lost sight of Ruby but was certain that she would catch up soon and not a minute later, a speeding bundle of petals flew past him and dropped back into the forest below, Ruby quickly transforming before she hit the ground and took off running. Gawking slightly in his head, Qrow just chuckled to himself at the fact that she could actually fly before swooping down to run along her when he landed.

"I haven't seen anything big yet but we still have a lot of space to cover. And good job on the flying thing, how do you do it?"

"I used a bit of Wind Dust but it was mostly just floating on the air currents. And I've already run into a few small groups but I haven't heard anything big either so I'll just keep going like I have been."

"Okay kiddo, I'll go back up again, talk to you if I have anything."

Keeping her pace, Ruby closed her eyes and continued to run through the forest blind; making sure that all her senses were still sharp. Hearing a faint scream from her left, Ruby used her Wind Dust again to shoot up into the air, looking to Qrow who had too stopped and they both took off in the direction they heard the scream come from, Ruby again using the Dust to shoot off and turning into her petals to float the rest of the way.

As they got closer to the sound, smoke started to float up from the small village close to the water's edge. Once they were above the town and could see what they had to work with, Ruby turned back and with a quick nod to Qrow to tell him that she will need him, dropped down into the centre of the town. Seeing that half the problem was the fires, Ruby trusted that Qrow would take care of the Grimm and activated the Water Dust crystal from both Sai's and made each of the glyphs appear above the two worst buildings, letting the water rain down on the buildings in harsh torrents. As those two fires went out, Ruby shifted them around the town, letting the water rain down on everything and just to make sure that she didn't miss anything, expanded and combined the glyphs to cover the whole town, everyone and thing getting soaked.

A quick nod from Ruby was all it took for Qrow to understand that she needed him, and it made him proud to know that she understood that some situations called for help and not to be a show off. Scouting below, Qrow found the largest group of Grimm attacking a house and flew right for it, turning back in time to land on the roof, turning his sword into its shotgun and shooting all the Creeps below. Jumping from the roof, Qrow practically danced through the small town as he cut through the Grimm, heads and limbs flying around as he passed by. Qrow was just finishing with the last one when apparently the sky opened above them, drenching him from head to toe.

"Ruby! Why am I soaked?!" Qrow yelled out when the water stopped, looking for the girl to blame.

"Because the whole town was on fire and I had to put it out, would you have preferred to burn?" Ruby replied from behind him, also soaked.

"Maybe, this is uncomfortable."

"Jeez, you big baby, suck it up. Plus, you'll dry in the air. I put all the fires out and nobody seems to be too hurt, I think everyone was just scared."

"Yeah, doesn't seem too bad. I'm sure they've already called the authorities so we should just get out of here."

"Good idea, which direction are we headed? I still have a fair few dust crystals and powders to go through."

"Let's head north then, less towns and more chance of a hoard."

"Sweet, let's go." And with that, both caped saviours took off into the forest, leaving the people of the town sighing in gratitude as the Grimm Reaper and her mentor took off.

It was relatively calm for the rest of the trip, no big hoards were left on the island as all the other Hunters had gotten to them first, but that didn't mean Ruby didn't get a good few hours of practice in, using up the power in both the crystals and powder capsules of Dust before heading home, happily exhausted and in need of a shower.

After getting back to the house and having a nice long shower, both of them flopped down onto the sofas and dosed, waiting for the last two members of their family to come home from their apparent shopping trip. Thinking about what her life was gonna be like at Beacon, Ruby sighed in disappointment at the realisation that the hunting trip they just got back from was going to be their last for a while. Qrow's most likely going to take the long missions again with both girls going to Beacon and might not be back for the holidays anymore.

"Hey Qrow?" Ruby quietly called out, hoping that he was still awake even though she too wanted to just fall asleep.

"What's up Rubes?"

"You're gonna be starting those really long missions for Ozpin again, aren't you?"

Sighing, Qrow rolled over until he was facing her, looking her in the eye. "Yeah Rubes, I will be. I already have one set up for the end of next week, enough time to make sure that your dads okay before taking off again."

"Oh." Ruby said, she hadn't quite realised that he was going to be leaving so soon after they did. "That's really soon…"

Sitting up, Qrow motioned for her to come sit with him, knowing that she needed some comfort. Ruby had always been surrounded by people she knew, they may not have been friends or anything but she still knew them and was familiar with them. Beacon was going to be entirely different, with all new teachers and only Yang and her few friends there to rely on, it must only then be sinking in that she was going to be in a very different space.

Seeing the invitation, Ruby quickly shuffled over, snuggling into his side as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders in a half hug. Hiding her face in his side, Ruby's eyes started tearing up at the thought of being alone in her new school. She wouldn't be able to just go home at the end of the day and talk to her dad or annoy Qrow to train. She wouldn't even be able to study with her friends as she wasn't going to be in that same grade anymore, her being a level above them. She won't even be able to call Qrow when she wants to either, as he's going to be on important missions and isn't allowed to talk to anyone outside of them.

Feeling her start to shudder, Qrow pulled her closer, shifting her around so that she was sitting on his lap sideways, hugging her close. "I know it's scary now, but you're going to make some amazing friends at Beacon. And it's not like you're going to be alone, you'll still have Yang and Team CFVY and even Ozpin and Peach I'm sure that they would both love it if you went to them, Peach loves you like one of her own and Ozpin always loves having you around. Just because you won't have me and your dad doesn't mean it'll be bad, it's just a chance for you to make some new memories."

Even though she understood what he was saying, Ruby still silently cried into his chest. There was still the chance that she wasn't going to be on a team with Yang and everyone else she knew was going too busy with school that she probably wasn't going to have much time to spend with them. And making new friends really wasn't her area of expertise, knowing that her age is going to be her main problem with most people.

Choosing not to say anything else, knowing that she just needed someone to hold her, Qrow leaned back against the sofa, slowly drifting off to sleep while holding the not so little girl in his arms. Feeling his breath even out beneath her head, Ruby just closed her eyes and followed his lead, quickly falling asleep in the familiar arms of one of her loves.

* * *

After Ruby and Qrow had taken off into the forest, Yang decided to go for a walk around, taking her father with her, knowing that he needed to get out of the house. They mostly spent the time in silence, both just appreciating the time they have together.

They spent most of the afternoon out, listening to the chatter of the island, both picking up on the tale of the Grimm Reaper and her Mentor saving one of the sea side towns from both a fire and a Grimm attack. They came swooping in from the sky, one almost dancing through the Grimm while the other used her expert knowledge and abilities with Dust to put out the fires. Not a moment after they were done did they leave, racing off into the forest again to hunt down more Grimm.

Both blondes just laughed at the story, knowing that it was most likely very true and of course they would go out hunting and save a town. Chuckling to each other, they decided to make their way back home and were silently pleased at the sight of the famous duo on the sofa, asleep and cuddling even though it was evident that Ruby had been crying.

Nobody really talked about how Ruby had been crying when the pair woke up to the smell of food, and the whole family spent the beautiful night eating dinner outside under the stars, laughing and retelling the story they heard from town. They all laughed even more as Ruby turned as red as her cape when they called her their saviour. It was that night that they all silently agreed to make the best of their last few days together before the girls had to leave, all of them knowing that it might be a while before they get to have all four of them together for so long.


	4. Chatper 2 - Beacon Initiation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby's first couple of days at Beacon. Introducing our two favourite teams - JNPR and RWBY - and Ruby's firs meetings with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good day ladies and gentlemen and welcome to chapter 4 of Silver Hope. I hope you enjoy.

The group had been waiting for about ten minutes before they were allowed on the massive airship to Beacon, and longer the wait, the harder it was to leave. Taiyang had been sulking for most of the week before they had to go, not liking that both of his little girls were going away to school and would only be back for holidays. Although they all decided to spend the last couple of days having fun, Tai was once again sniffling miserably as they all waited to be let on, resulting in both girls almost guilty crying too.

"Dad, you need to stop crying. We aren't going to be that far away and we'll come back for all the holidays. It isn't like we're leaving you forever." Yang said, trying to console her crying father but at the mention of them leaving forever, the tears just started coming faster.

"Good job Yang, you made it worse." Qrow congratulated sarcastically as he held out another tissue for the sobbing man squeezing both his daughters in a bear hug. "Tai, let them go. I know that you're gonna miss them and all but you can still call them on the weekends. You knew this was going to happen eventually, you're just gonna have to live with it."

"Yeah but I thought I would at least have Ruby still for a year before she took off too, and now they're leaving me. What am I going to do?"

"Keep teaching at Signal, or go on missions again. I don't know, but they aren't little girls anymore and have to live their own lives now. Let them go Tai, they have to board now."

Looking up to see everyone else was walking away and onto the massive ship, both the girls wiggled their way out of his hold, reaching around him to hug him in a group hug before they both leaned down to kiss his cheeks.

"We love you and all dad but we have to go. We'll call you once we settle and stuff." Yang said, grabbing her bags and slowly stepping backwards away from her father and Uncle.

Ruby was a little nicer and more emotional, feeling upset because it was partially her fault for him being so upset. "I'm sorry that I'm making you so upset Daddy, but this is going to be so good and I need it. I know you wanted more time but that's just not something I can give, I will write to you and call and stuff. I'll miss you lots." She sniffled, hugging him again before backing away to say goodbye to her Qrow.

"Hey kiddo, I'll see you later. Don't know when but I will, don't you worry." Qrow said, trying to console her as she looked up at him, tears in her eyes.

Ruby just hugged him tight around his middle, still too short to reach very high but trying anyway. "Please be careful on your missions. I know that they are gonna be longer and more dangerous now but please always come back. And if you can, spend a couple of days with Ozpin. I know that you haven't seen much of each other lately and with you leaving so soon, please spend some time together."

"You are the weirdest kid, you know that. I'll try to stop by, but I can't promise that you'll see me." Qrow chuckled, curling around her as she started shuddering in deep breaths.

"I don't mind, I just don't like that it's been me that's been keeping you apart."

"Never worry about that Ruby, because it isn't you keeping me away. Now get going before you miss your ride."

Looking up at him with teary eyes, Ruby smiled slightly and bounced up, kissing his cheek before grabbing her bags and following her sister up the ramp. Neither sister looked back at the men, both knowing that they would break down and go running back if they did, their love for their father too strong.

"Come on Ruby, I think we put our bags over here." Yang directed, trying to distract both of them with something to do.

Nodding along, Ruby placed her bags down before wandering around, looking at all the lounge areas and viewing decks. It wasn't long before the Airship was taking off and heading for Beacon, finally. Both girls grinned to each other before taking off for the viewing deck in a race, distracted from their moping by the new level of excitement that came with going to a new place.

Reaching the viewing deck, Yang and Ruby stood side by side and watched as the ground below passed by quickly, the city giving way to water as the Airship flew towards the academy.

"Oh, I still can't believe that I'm going to Beacon with my little sister. I'm so excited." Yang expressed, attacking Ruby in a hug and picking her up, spinning around in glee.

"Really sis, it's nothing. I mean, this is going to be so much fun and all but I'm trying not to draw too much attention." Ruby mumbled, dusting off her skirt once she was back on her feet.

"What do you mean it's nothing? It was incredible, everyone at Beacon is gonna think you're the bee's knees."

"I don't want to be the bee's knees. I don't want to be any kind of knees. I just want to be a normal girl with normal knees. Which means no telling people about my friendship with Ozpin. That is a 'Nope' topic, okay?" Ruby said, glaring at her sisters grinning face.

"Okay. Ozpin is a 'Nope' topic. Anything else?" Yang asked, realising that Ruby was serious and she needed to know the boundaries before she crossed them.

"Yeah, RoseBud and Mum. Crescent Rose is my primary weapon, I'm not going to use RoseBud unless I really have to and not in front of other people so no talking about them unless I bring them up first."

Yang nodded at the request, knowing that while she was a big mouth, she knew that those weren't hers to talk about and would happily leave them for Ruby. They already had a prepared backstory for the family, basically clouding their mum's death in mystery.

"And my eyes. I know that nobody knows about the legends and even if they did, they would hardly believe it but all it takes is one slipped comment and the rumour mill starts and I really don't need that on top of skipping ahead two years." Ruby sighed, knowing that anything got out about her eyes then she was practically screwed.

"Got it. All the of the 'Nope' subjects are logged and Nope'd." Yang saluted with a grin, making Ruby grin too before they looked out the windows again.

"Look its Patch. I guess home really isn't that far away." Ruby mumbled to herself, reaching her hand out to rest on the glass.

"Beacon is our home now." Yang said, slinging an arm over her sister's shoulders. They both just appreciated the view, ignoring the news that was playing the story about the Torchwick robbery. The girls were distracted from their musings at the sound of a different voice cutting off the news report.

"Hello and welcome to Beacon."

"Is that-"

"My name is Glynda Goodwitch."

"Oh."

"You are among a privileged few who have received the honour of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace." At that statement, Ruby scoffed in disgust. "And as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world." And with that, her holographic image disappeared to leave the amazing view they were looking at before.

The two girls stood together again, admiring the view before it to interrupted by a vomiting blonde racing across the ship in search of a bin.

"Ewww Yang you got vomit on your shoe!"

"Gross, gross, gross, gross. Get it off, get off!"

"Don't come near me. Stay away!"

After hopping around and running away for a few minutes, the girls calmed down a bit and Ruby helped Yang clean off her boots, both of them holding their breath as they cleaned, not wanting to smell it and throw up themselves.

It wasn't long before the Airship was docking and the sisters raced back up to the doors, having been told that their bags will be taken care of, even if they don't actually know where they were going. Yang was excited to finally get to see the whole of the school and Ruby silently very glad that she already knew the whole campus inside and out from her many visits. Stepping off the ship with her sister and taking a deep breath, the girls walked forwards and took in the glory that was the Beacon campus.

"The view from Vale's got nothing on this." Yang grinned as she crossed her arms, appreciating the amazing view.

"Oooooooh, Yang. That girl has a collapsible bow. And he has a fire sword." Ruby rambled as she drifted away, following the people with amazing weapons.

"Woah, slow down sis. They're just weapons." Yang claimed, hooking a hand through Ruby's hood to make sure she didn't go too far.

"Just weapons?! They're like an extension of ourselves. And so much easier to talk to, meeting new weapons is like meeting new people, only better."

"Come on Ruby. Why don't you try and make some friends of your own?" Yang groaned, pulling Ruby's hood down over her head.

"Why would I need new friends if I have you?"

"Well, actually my friends are here now. I have to go now. Bye!" And just like that, she was gone and left Ruby spinning dizzily in the middle of the path.

"Uuugh." Ruby groaned before tripping over the luggage trolley behind her. "Oww."

"What are you doing?" Hearing a crabby voice from above her, Ruby looked up to see a girl dressed all in white and pale blue.

"Sorry."

"Sorry? Do you have any idea the damage you could have caused?" The crabby girl yelled at her again. With a confused sound, her head still hurting from the hit on the ground, Ruby gently grabbed one of the cases and passed it up, only for it to be snatched from her hands. How rude. "Give me that. This is Dust. Mined and purified from the Schnee Dust Company."

At Ruby's continued brainless sound, the crabby girl grabs a vial and snaps the case closed, small amounts of Dust Powder escaping. "Are you brain dead? Dust. Fire. Water. Lightning. Energy!"

Even through Ruby's cloudy mind, she could see exactly where that situation was headed every time the crabby girl shook the vial with the very loose cork. Feeling herself about to sneeze, Ruby stood and grabbed the vial of Burn dust and quickly stepped away from the Dust cloud forming, properly sealing it before she sneezed.

"How dare you?!" Crabby girl shrieked as she stomped over.

Finally having had enough of the annoying girls attitude, Ruby turned with a murderous expression and met her half-way. "No, how dare you?! Do you have any idea the amount of damage  _you_  could have caused?! Who shakes an unsealed vial of Dust – pure energy – in front of someone's face?! Everyone knows that all it takes is one sneeze to set it off and you almost blew us off the cliff. What kind of idiot are you?!" Ruby screamed, shoving the vial at the crabby girl's chest before turning away.

"Oh, the nerve!" Crabby girl shrieked.

Stopping abruptly, Ruby tuned on her heel and marched back, catching the eye of the bowed girl she almost ran into. "Look Princess-"

"It's heiress, actually." At the addition of a new voice, both girls looked over to see a girl with a black bow on her head and a black and white outfit. "Weiss Schnee, Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. One of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."

"Finally, some recognition."

"The same company infamous for its controversial labour forces and questionable business partners." Hearing all that, Ruby became even more enraged at the apparent 'Heiress'.

"And one would think that an 'Heiress' to a Dust company would know how to treat the stuff." Ruby said, taking one last look at the blubbering girl before storming off, knowing that she needed to cool down before she would blow up at someone else.

It only took a minute for her to reach the very familiar room of the now second year team. Using her Scroll to unlock the door and storming in, not caring about the half-naked Fox lying on his bed before face planting straight onto Velvet's bed and into her arms, screaming out her frustrations into the mattress.

After screaming for almost a whole minute, Ruby finally ran out of air and rolled over, snuggling into Velvet's side.

"That was some scream there, Red. Wanna talk about it?" Coco asked from her desk, having turned to face the two girls when she didn't stop after ten seconds as she usually did.

"I just met Weiss Schnee after tripping on her luggage and rather than blowing us both up by sneezing into the dust cloud she made, shaking a vial of unsealed Burn Dust in my face, I snatched it, moved away, sealed the vial and sneezed. And then she comes marching at me is if it was all my fault! Stupid crabby girl, and that was all after Yang ditched me to go hang with her friends." Ruby ranted, not bothering to move as Velvet started to pet her hair.

"She sounds like a whingey bitch if you ask me." Coco said, early a chuckle from everyone in the room.

"Basically. I mean, who is an heiress to a Dust company but just waves the stuff around like an idiot?" Ruby grumbled, finally losing of the tension that built throughout the day the wasn't even half over.

"Well don't get too comfortable there, Red. You still have the opening ceremony to get to in only 5 minutes." Coco informed her as she checked the time, only to receive a muffled groan in response.

Grumbling at her luck, Ruby rolled over and sat up on the edge of the bed, groaning all the while. "Okay, I'm going. I don't know what else we'll be doing today so I might not see you until tomorrow or the day after."

"We know Red. We'll see you later, now get going before you're late."

With a quick round of hugs to the older team, Ruby raced out of the room and down to the main hall where the ceremony would most likely be taking place, catching the attention of one lost blonde who decided to follow along.

Ruby arrived at the massive hall with a few minutes to spare, and despite the fact that nobody has any assigned spot or chairs, apparently her sister 'saved her a spot'. Glaring at her over happy sister, Ruby quickly made her way through the crowd and promptly punched her sister in the arm. "That was for ditching me."

"Oh, come on. I'm sure it wasn't so bad. You made it here didn't you?"

"Yeah, after I tripped on some crabby girl's luggage and she almost blew us off the cliff. She was shaking an unsealed vial of Burn Dust in my face, what an idiot!"

"Oh, I can see how that could have been not good."

"And it turned out that she was Wiess Schnee, Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company and apparently a complete idiot."

"Yikes. And you blew up at her, didn't you?"

"Of course, I did. I had to snatch the damn thing from her before I sneezed and she thought  _I_  was the problem? I don't think so. I spent the last five minutes with Team CFVY because at least they like me."

"Sorry sis, I didn't think leaving you would be that bad."

"It's fine. At least I know my way around the school and didn't get lost, that would've been bad."

Both girls sighed at that. While Ruby was actually pretty good with directions, she was not good with unfamiliar places. Ruby getting lost in Beacon would have been disastrous and resulted in a meltdown. Yang felt incredibly bad for her younger sister at that thought, knowing that if that happened it would have been her fault because she ditched her.

"I'm sorry, Ruby. I didn't think about that at all."

"It's fine Yang, I do know my way around and I had Team CFVY, I was fine. I mean besides the crabby-"

"You again!"

Jumping slightly, Ruby turned around to see the crabby girl from before glaring at her and holding out a pamphlet reading 'Dust for Dummies'. Ruby looked back at the girl, a glare of her own growing on her face, and she could hear Yang behind her laughing at the thought of Ruby need such an item.

"What do you want?"

"You're a thieving idiot who almost sneezed into a Burn Dust vial."

"No, you're the imbecile who shook an unsealed vial of Dust powder in someone's face. You almost got us blown off the cliff. If anyone needs that pamphlet it's you. And my name is Ruby, so if you could stop calling me an idiot, that would be great."

"How dare you?" Taking a deep breath, Weiss carried on. "Look  _Ruby,_ the Schnee Dust Company is not responsible for any injuries or damages sustained while operating a Schnee Dust Company product-"

"Let me stop you right there, Heiress. I have not, and will not, use SDC products so that spiel is useless for me. I already know how to handle Dust so if you could kindly leave me alone, that would be great."

"Damn sis, go get her!"

"Yang."

"Sorry."

"Look, you don't like me. I don't really like you. Let's just not like each other at a distance." Ruby said, having already screamed out her anger before and just really wanted to be left alone.

"Fine, but don't talk to me unless you have to." And then she was gone. The silence didn't last long though before Ozpin made his way to the microphone.

"I'll… keep this brief. You have travelled here to today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge with free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you, to take the first step."

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight, tomorrow your initiation begins, be ready. You are dismissed." Goodwitch finished, dismissing the new first years.

The sisters gave each other an odd look before shrugging and moving along, Ruby had already explained what Ozpin could be like sometimes and really, that wasn't that much of a surprise. The girls wandered off to explore the campus – honestly more Ruby giving a tour than anything else – and find their bags. They were all piled in the ballroom but there was no rhyme nor reason to the pile and it took half an hour of digging to find theirs and set up.

Day drifted into night quickly and as all the other first years started to settle, Ruby was feeling anxious and without a thought, pulled out RoseBud's handles and start idly spinning them around her fingers. Thinking about everything that had happened that day, meeting Weiss and kind of meeting the girl with the bow…

* * *

Getting back from the bathrooms where she got changed, Yang sighed when she saw Ruby sitting there staring mindlessly ahead while spinning the beautiful jewelled handles. Ruby only ever really took them out when she was bored or really anxious, and in all honesty it made sense. Ruby had been pushed ahead two years and was in a large group of people she didn't know, and for a short period of time, alone from her only known person.

"Ruby, put them away before you get them stolen. Despite no-one knowing what they are, they still look very pretty. Why don't you write a letter for the gang back at Signal, I know you promised to tell them about Beacon."

Ruby was startled at the sudden voice of her sister right next to her, having not heard her get back. Putting the handles away, she grabbed her notebook and pencil, agreeing. "Yeah that's not a bad idea. I also promised Dad too so maybe I should."

Yang and Ruby sat in silence for the next little while, Ruby writing a letter to each friend and her father, so far just complaining about the terrible people she had run into; Vomit Boy and Crabby Girl.

"So, what were you thinking so hard about before?" Yang asked when she saw Ruby slowing down and putting her stuff away.

"My track record with making friends. I know I have Team CFVY but I won't be able to see them very often with us doing homework and assignments now. I don't actually have any friends here and it's weird."

"Well, did you meet anyone other than Miss Crabby?"

"There was another girl there when I blew up at Wiess. She had a cute bow on her head and-" Ruby cut herself off at the sound of a match and the soft glow that came from a candle being lit. Leaning up to look in the direction it came from, she saw the exact girl she was just talking about. "Actually, that's her. She saw what happened and informed me of Miss Crabby's Heiress status but I stormed off before I could say anything to her."

"Well, why don't we go say something now?" Yang said, grabbing her sister's hand and dragging her across the room, kicking and grumbling.

"Hello~!" Yang sang as they approached, gaining the attention of the reading girl.

Looking up from her book, Blake was surprised to see a random blonde walking steadily towards her, dragging another girl but at the sight of the other girl she kind of understood. "Hello."

"I do believe you two have met?" Yang asked, shoving Ruby in front of her and stepping back a couple of steps.

Blake silently chuckled to herself at the hopeless look the younger girl was wearing. "Aren't you the girl who blew up at the Schnee?"

"Yeah, ugh… My name's Ruby. And thanks for helping me back there, I really don't understand how that whole thing was supposed to be my fault."

"I don't really think I did much to help, you had it handled pretty much yourself. And the names Blake, it's a pleasure to meet."

"You too."

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Yang decided to step back in and help out again, knowing that Ruby needed it. "Nice night, don't you think?"

"Yes, it's lovely. Almost as lovely as this book. That I will continue to read after you're gone." Blake said, getting tired of the still unnamed blonde.

"What's it about?" Ruby asked, but clarified at the odd looks she was getting. "Your book, I mean."

"It's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over the body."

"I love books. Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters, they're one of the reasons I want to become a Huntress."

"And why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?"

"Well, I'm hoping we all will. When I was kid I wanted to be just like the heroes in those books. Someone who fought for what was right and protected people who couldn't protect themselves."

"That's quite ambitious for a child, but unfortunately the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."

"Well, isn't that what we're for? To make it better?"

"Well, Ruby and- actually, I don't know your name."

"Yang."

"Well Ruby and Yang, it was a pleasure talking but I'm going to sleep, so goodnight."

"Goodnight Blake."

* * *

Walking back to their own sleeping bags, Yang pulled Ruby into a side hug, feeling so proud of her little sister. "I'm so proud of you." She whispered before rolling over and going to sleep, they both knew that the next day was going to be hard.

Waking up in a ballroom full of unknown people, Ruby freaked out a little bit, but at the obnoxious sound of her sisters snoring, she calmed down. It wasn't a second later that she suddenly became excited, knowing that initiation was starting and she wouldn't have to do anymore talking or interacting, just kicking butt and slaying monsters.

The whole ballroom was a blur of motion in a short amount of time, the whole of the first years getting up and ready for their first day at Beacon. Some already pairing off with friends that had also been accepted with them too, and others keeping more to themselves; most likely transfer students from the other kingdoms.

Between all the commotion of packing away their gear again and eating breakfast, an odd pair caught Ruby's eye. There was an orange haired girl who Ruby thought she would get along swimmingly with, she looked like so much fun to be around, always jumping around and talking. The other half of the pair though, was always quiet and just kind of  _there_. Not really doing anything to encourage or discourage the rambling girl around him but not ignoring her. He seemed like a good friend and Ruby was almost jealous of the pair, knowing that she would never really find anyone that would be as accepting of her odd behaviour.

Looking around at all the other first years getting ready too, Ruby made sure to know who would and wouldn't be good in a four-person team with her. Knowing that she was both a long and close-range fighter, a supporting fighter would be good. And a tank of a student, like Yang, who could take hard hits and dish them back just as hard. Although none of the students would like to classify themselves as a support fighter, Ruby knows that people like Weiss who, apparently works with a customised Rapier with a Dust barrel and her family Semblance would be a great support fighter – not that Ruby would want to be on a team with her.

After eating breakfast and everyone started making their way to the lockers, grabbing their weapons, Ruby kept an eye out for Pyrrha Nikos, the apparent champion of the first years. Not three seconds after she thought it, did she find her, the bright red hair and golden armour standing out against the pale blue and white of the crabby girl sucking up to her. ' _Great. Of course, the Schnee would want someone like Pyrrha.'_  Ruby thought to herself, already groaning on the inside.

"You've been awfully quiet today, Ruby."

"Yep, I've been trying to plan what kind of team we'll be put into and who would work best. Plus, today I get to let my sweetheart do the talking, it's gonna be great."

"Well, remember Ruby, you're not the only one going through initiation. You're gonna have to meet new people, especially when you form teams."

"Oh, well, I figured that we'd be on a team so that's one person down."

"Maybe you should try being on someone else's team."

"My dearest sister Yang, are you implying that you do not wish to be on the same team as me?"

"What? No, of course I do. I just thought, I don't know, maybe it would help you… break out of your shell?"

"What, I don't need to break out of my shell, that is-"

"Ridiculous! There is no way I put my gear in locker 636…"

Ruby frowned at being cut off, and at the level of rudeness that boy had to walk straight through a conversation without any manners.

"Rude." Yang said, watching the boy walk away.

Ruby silently agreed when she saw that Pyrrha and Weiss were talking. Closing her eyes, Ruby tried to focus on what they were saying, needing to know where both girls stood when it came to team formations.

"So, Pyrrha. Have you thought about who's team you would like to be on? I'm sure everyone is eager to unite with such a strong, well known individual such as yourself." Weiss said. She knew that getting on a team with Pyrrha would be invaluable and mean that she would be guaranteed to succeed.

"Hmm, I'm not quite sure. I was planning on letting the chips fall where they may." Pyrrha responded, shuffling slightly. Although she seemed nice, Pyrrha was always nervous when people started pointing out her achievements as her best qualities.

"Well, I was thinking maybe we could be on a team together."

"Well that sounds grand." Pyrrha agreed.

"Great." ' _This will be perfect. The smartest girl in case combined with the strongest girl in class. Together we will be unstoppable. I can see it now, we'll be popular, we'll be celebrities. Nothing can come between us_ -"

"Although I do have to wonder who will get on a team with the Grimm Reaper." Pyrrha said, wondering aloud to herself. Even over in Mistral, Pyrrha had heard about the Grimm Reaper, although nobody really knows anything about them, not even their gender.

"The what now?" Asked a random blonde as he ducked in between the two girls.

"The Grimm Reaper is a student who has amazing power and potential. Nobody knows anything about them though, and I have only heard the rumours that they were a part of the incoming first years to Beacon." Pyrrha informed.

"I thought they were nothing but a myth. I've heard of them but they surely can't be real, and if they are, they cannot only be a first-year student. Surely they would be a professional hunter with the way the rumours paint them." Weiss said, denying even the possibility of such a being existing. Even Atlas had heard about the Grimm Reaper.

Turning back to her locker but keeping an ear on their conversation, Ruby blushed at the praise that they were painting for her unfortunately famous name.

"I heard that. Looks like your more famous than we thought, if even Atlas and Mistral have heard of you." Yang said, nudging shoulders with her blushing little sister. Although Ruby never did anything in particular to make her name known, she had built a reputation for herself every time she went out for hunts and had all the Hunters clear the island. Not many people have that kind of power, or trust from the authorities and guilds that she will clear through the Grimm enough to replace all the Hunters and Huntresses they sent out.

To add to it even more, she still had her half of the Sinister Sisters reputation to keep her famous. Although neither reputation involved her real name, it was still big enough to reach the other kingdoms, and someone knew she was at Beacon as a first year.

"Shut up you. Nobody has ever put a name to it and it's going to stay that way. Now let's get going, I want to cover team set ups with you before we start initiation. I don't know when teams are going to be set up and we need to be prepared." Ruby grumbled, shoving back as they heard the announcement for the first years to meet on the cliff.

After kind of half watching the debacle that was 'Jaune Arc', Ruby and Yang took pity on the poor guy and helped him up, making a new friend in the process.

Reaching the top of the cliff and see both Ozpin and Goodwitch waiting, Ruby shrunk back to hide behind her sister at the piercing glare Goodwitch sent her.

"What did you do to her?" Yang asked quietly, tilting her head back to see her cowering sister.

"She didn't know about my visits to the academy and only just recently found out. I don't think she liked the fact that I could hide from her and she never knew." Ruby quietly responded, sticking her head up to see Goodwitch was otherwise entertained, and sighed a breath of relief. "She's totally going to have it out for me, for weeks."

"Probably. Have fun with that." Yang said, before sitting down on her platform, waiting for everyone else to arrive.

Hearing Ozpin clear his throat softly, everyone turned to face the Headmaster. "For years you have trained to become warriors, and today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumours about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates, today." Goodwitch continued, which seemed to set the theme for the rest of the speech; each of the professors taking turns through the speech.

"These team mates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So, it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing, will be your partner for the next four years." Ozpin stated, voice as even as when he started.

At that, Ruby's world shattered. What if she didn't get partnered with Yang? What if she got some random useless dude? What if she got Weiss?

"See, I told you." The orange haired girl said, poking her friend in the arm.

Eyeing the girl slightly, Ozpin continued, "After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way, do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die. You will be monitored and graded for the duration of the initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path, containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

Ruby just glared at Ozpin for a few seconds before sighing and preparing herself for the flight she was about to face, ignoring Jaune as he bumbled his way through a couple of stupid questions.

' _Okay, I need Yang, possibly Pyrrha, and two others. But Yang first.'_  Ruby thought, mentally preparing herself for the battles and partnership ahead. Noticing that they were being flung in order, Ruby prepared herself, grinning at Yang as she pulled out a pair of aviators before taking off.

Pulling out Crescent Rose, Ruby quickly loaded the Gravity Dust magazine and shot below her, shooting her higher into the sky and gave here the advantage of finding the Forest Temple in a straight line ahead of her, granted that she landed straight too. Reaching the apex of her flight, Ruby swapped the magazine for a normal one but during that time, she didn't see the black bird flying in her direction. Looking up from her swap, Ruby crashed straight into the poor bird, spinning out its way before she could take it down with her with a shouted, 'Birdy. No!'.

Aiming down and shooting Ruby sent a volley of shots below, using them to slow her descent before unfolding the scythe and catching the blade around a tree branch, swinging around once before letting herself fall to the ground.

' _Right, I need to find Yang. And head to the Forest Temple. At the same time. So, head for the forest temple and hope I run into Yang. Not exactly a plan I like best but most efficient.'_  Ruby nodded to herself and set off in a straight line, praying that she would meet with Yang soon.

Meanwhile, the other first year students were steadily pairing up. Jaune had practically been claimed by Pyrrha's spear/shotgun and Yang paired up with their new friend Blake.

Ruby ran straight for almost ten minutes before she ran into anyone, and even worse for her, it was Miss Crabby the heiress. Skidding to a stop and very slowly looking up, both girls expressed their displeasure at their luck, Ruby groaning and Weiss huffing and stomping off. "Where are you going? We're meant to be a team…" Ruby trailed off as she lost sight of the girl, both annoyed at her luck and Ozpin's stupid rules and upset, knowing that she was going to picked on and shoved around by the girl for being younger.

"Curse you Ozpin. I know you can hear me, and I hate your stupid rules." Ruby said aloud, knowing that he was watching, even if she didn't know where the cameras were.

Tapping her foot in annoyance, Ruby waited for the crabby girl to come back, knowing that the only other person around was Jaune – although his lack of Aura was concerning, she could sense the traces of Aura on that weapon of Pyrrha's, meaning that the hanging boy had already been claimed.

Hearing her come back, Ruby opened her eyes and looked over at the girl, silently agreeing that they could work together to make it to the end.

"By no means does this make us friends." Weiss said, walking off to the side, clearly having no idea on where she was going.

"Fine by me." Ruby agreed, following the girl through some bushes, hoping that maybe she had a plan that wasn't walking around in denial.

Ruby was proven wrong not even five minutes later while sitting on the forest floor, listening to the clueless girl walk back and forth in random directions, only once getting it right at which she turned and walked in another direction. Having had enough of the annoy girl's mumblings, Ruby stood and dusted off her skirt. "Alright, I've had enough. You need to stop, just admit that you don't know where you're going and we can finally move on."

"Oh, like you know where to go." Weiss snapped at the younger girl, already sick of her light know it all air. Just because she managed to sneak her way into the school, did not mean that she was any better than all the others.

"Yeah, I kind of do. We need to head to the  _Northern Temple_  which means that we need to head north, which would be directly behind you." Ruby said, pointing directly behind the snappy girl and following, walking past the girl and towards the forest temple that she saw. Thankfully, she heard the other girl following, stomping the whole way but following nonetheless.

"Oh, and how could you possibly know that?" She snapped again, not impressed with being shown up.

"I saw it when we got launched. I shot myself higher so I could find it and ran straight for it, you just happened to be in my path at the time. And if you really had no clue, then you could have just done the same, a little Dust and you would have been high enough to see it too." Ruby informed her, not slowing her pace for the ignorant and whingy girl.

"Oh fine. But don't be slow, I swear if I get a bad grade because of you-"

"Look, if you don't want me to be around, fine. I can go off and meet you at the temple, but stop insulting me and my abilities. I am far from slow and if you think you can find the temple by yourself than fine, have fun." Ruby snapped, tired of the girl and her attitude, before taking off in a bundle of rose petals. Realising that maybe leaving her only teammate so far by herself in a Grimm infested forest would not be the greatest idea, Ruby double backed and followed the grumbling girl from above in the trees.

"You may be fast but you still excel at wasting time." Weiss called out, but noticed that the girl was no longer there. Huffing in disgust at her behaviour, Weiss was about to continue on her journey when she heard shuffling in the bushes. "Ruby…?"

Her only response was more shuffling, only from a different direction. Soon, small red eyes were lighting up the surrounding bushes from all sides. A second later, the girl was surrounded by growling Beowolves, and she was alone. "RUBY!"

Ruby, despite being called for, decided to test her new partner on her ability to fight. Ruby knew that most students had to pass a vigorous and taxing physical exam for them to get into Beacon, but nothing compares to watching how someone will react when faced with the real thing. And something tells Ruby that Weiss was not a girl that would have gone hunting for the beasts before.

Watching from the higher branches, Ruby was both impressed and disappointed with her partner. Sure, there was almost twenty of the beasts – some older than others – but they were not anything difficult and could have been handled much quicker than whatever Weiss was doing. Although the girl was good at dodging; she almost danced through the forest and around the clawed arms that were aimed for her.

Ruby sighed in resignation when she saw her partner get hit, her crouched form sliding across the ground, only to stand there for almost ten whole seconds fixing her posture. While surrounded by viscous Beowolves! Ruby could have screamed but instead, she grabbed Crescent Rose and quickly rushed towards the beast about to pounce, which just happened to be the one Weiss was aiming for.

Only just seeing the girl in time, Weiss stumbled to a halt but the Burn Dust was already loaded and ready and needed a release. Weiss swiped her rapier to the side, the Dust burning through the grass and straight up a tree, immediately burning it to a crisp. More than a little annoyed, Weiss turned to see her partner already gone and dancing through the monsters surrounding them. "Excuse me, you attacked out of turn. I could have killed you."

Ruby turned away from the fading body of her last kill, stupefied shock painting her face at the statement. Realising she didn't have time for the girl, Ruby just turned back and grumble to herself. "You'll have to try a lot harder than that."

Only just hearing the grumbled response, Weiss stomped her foot in anger. Looking around to see more of the forest catching on fire and quickly surrounding the two girls, Weiss grabbed Ruby's arm and took off for the opening in the fire, shouting at the younger girl. "We have to go."

Hearing the howling and watching more of the forest quickly catch the growing fire, Ruby groaned again before yanking her arm out of the grip and turning back, and bursting into rose petals.

Feeling the girl pull away, Weiss watched as she turned back and disappeared back into the fire. ' _If she wants to die, then fine. I'll just find a new partner to team with.'_  She thought, not even bothering to go back and help her partner.

Ruby only looked back for a second and watched as her supposed partner didn't even think about turning back to help her. While it annoyed her that she was just getting left behind, Ruby had to thank her stars that she was leaving, because she didn't want anyone to see her with RoseBud and certainly not using her eyes.

Folding down her scythe and putting it away, Ruby reached into her pockets, reaching through the hole she made in them and grabbing the familiar handles from their holsters on her thighs. Pulling them out and flicking them open into her Sai's, Ruby activated her eyes slightly and pushed the power down and through the handles, activating the Water, Ice and Gravity Dust as it passed. Stabbing both tips into the ground, three magic circles appeared, one above another with the purple Gravity circle at the bottom to allow the rain and ice shards to fall up from the ground.

Ruby watched as the water practically rained up the trees and put the fires out, the water stopping before it reached the top as per Ruby's wishes. As the fires went out, Ruby was satisfied at the sight of all the Grimm freezing over as each ice shard, charged with her silver eye power, even so much as scraped their fur.

It was only a minute later that all the Grimm were shattering and fading away in the wind and the fires were all safely out before she stopped the flow of power and yanked her Sai's from the ground. With a quick glance over to double check, Ruby let RoseBud fold back down and replace them in their holsters before she burst back up the hill in a bundle of rose petals, searching for her partner who had stopped and was leaning against a tree breathing heavily.

"What was that?!" Ruby shouted as she reformed in front of the girl, no small amount of angry at the obnoxious girl. "That should have been easy!"

"Well perhaps if you had exercised even the slightest amount of caution with the placement of your strikes, I wouldn't have set the forest on fire!"

"You were surrounded by at least twenty of those monsters and you spent almost ten whole seconds trying to fix your posture! You don't have that kind of luxury out here Weiss! I don't know if you've battled real Grimm before, or maybe you just haven't faced that many in one go, but you won't have time to 'consider the placement of your strikes'! Or taking turns. You either attack or you die, and you were going to die."

"How dare you?! You know, for someone who talks so much, it really is surprising you would communicate so little during an encounter."

"Sometimes you don't have time to talk Weiss, and I'm not yet used to working with you. I've been hunting with the same three people my whole life. Your fighting style is different and I'm not used to the level of communication you need."

"Well, congratulations on being the strongest child to sneak your way into Beacon, bravo." Weiss said, walking off in the direction of the temple.

"Uuugh!" Ruby seethed, pulling out her scythe and slashing down a tree in her anger, only faintly hearing the flapping of wings that said she disturbed someone's nest; and they were not small. "Oops."

* * *

Shooting the first-year students off the cliff was always Ozpin's favourite part, as bad as that sounded. But it allowed them to feel what it would be like to free fall and it was always better to let them feel it then, at the beginning, than when they are on a mission and too scared to jump themselves.

Although, Ozpin was curious to see what Ruby would do, as she was apparently a lot more serious and awkward than he thought. He did catch the glare she sent at him when he informed them all about teams, and was a little worried at how she would go, knowing that she wasn't the best at making friends around her age.

He was both proud and a little surprised when he saw her swap out her magazine and shoot herself higher in the air before swapping them back for her landing; she understood that what Dust she did have, would be limited on missions. It was entertaining though to watch as she slammed into a seemingly random bird, who had awkwardly had to straighten himself before flying straight at the Professors on the cliff.

"Dammit Ruby. That bloody hurt." Qrow grumbled as he landed next to Ozpin on the cliff with a stumble, rubbing his arm that got hit the most by the falling girl.

With a small grin in acknowledgement of his grumbling lover, Ozpin mentally ran through all the first years with a glance down at his screen, knowing who would most likely run into who based off the direction they were flung at. Watching as each pair was made, he grew steadily more worried about Ruby, having heard what happened the day before with the Schnee girl. It wasn't long before his worries were confirmed and the two girls met, though Weiss did storm off in denial, completely ignoring his eye contact rule.

Not good, if she thinks she can just get away with things because she didn't like it. ' _It seems Ruby is going to be the mature one in that partnership, what a shame.'_  He thought, slightly upset at the realisation that she would no longer be the happy girl who thought of Beacon as her safe space. Hearing Ruby grumble at him though was entertaining as she waited for her partner to come back.

Qrow watched over his lover's shoulder as Ozpin flicked through the pairings on his screen and was always drawn back to the same group; Yang Xiao Long and Blake Belladonna, Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos, and Weiss Schnee and Ruby Rose. It was most definitely going to be an interesting year. A loose cannon, a Faunus in hiding, a boy with fake transcripts and no knowledge of Aura, a prodigy from another kingdom, an heiress, and a prodigy who hides from her reputation.

Watching as the last partnership was formed, Ozpin and Qrow ignored Glynda in favour of watching the interesting interactions between Ruby and Weiss. The younger girl had just stormed off and for some odd reason, double backed for her teammate, although she hid in the trees rather than confronting her. Both men were slightly worried as they watched the Schnee girl get pushed around by the Grimm, especially when she actually stopped in the middle of the fight to correct herself, resulting in Ruby having to save her. Ruby had impressed Ozpin then, with her quick and efficient movements, killing one and moving on, not lagging behind. ' _I really did teach her well.'_

Having fought with Winter Schnee quite a few times, Qrow had expected more from the younger Schnee girl, but was disappointed as he watched Ruby jump in and save her ass.

Watching the forest get caught on fire was not as entertaining though for either man, and Ozpin was worried that he would have to send in Bullheads to put it out when he watched Ruby run back in, her partner not caring at all for the girl's safety and running away. Curious to see what she would do, Ozpin enlarged the camera view focusing on Ruby and called Glynda over as she pulled out her Sai's.

Qrow's eyes widened when she put Crescent Rose away, knowing what she was going to do before she even put her hands anywhere near her pockets. ' _Shit.'_

"I didn't know she had another weapon. She only listed her scythe for her weapons." Glynda said, as the girl reached into her pockets and pulled out the handles. "Smart though, for hiding them, nobody is going to look up her skirt for anymore weapons."

"I've been training her with those weapons since I first met her. I was surprised to know that they weren't her primary weapons." Ozpin informed the lady, before they both went quiet, watching as she ran straight to the centre of the fire, unfolding RoseBud into their Sai form and stabbing the tips into the ground. Activating the Dust from the handles, Ruby summoned three magic circles one after the other.

The water rained up the trees and put the fire out, stopping before it reached the canopy per her request and while quite genius, for someone who didn't want to advertise her expertise in Dust, it was the ice shards and how the Grimm reacted to them that had both Professors shocked. As each ice shard stabbed through or even so much as grazed the dark creatures, they would immediately freeze over and shatter, a slight silver sheen accompanying the icy colour.

"Th-that is not normal. Surely not, but how…" Ozpin didn't know either but it was amazing to watch all the Grimm shatter and fade away, clearly another type of magic was involved and he was fairly certain what it was.

"I'm not entirely sure but it seems that Miss Rose is going to be having a talk with us all at the end of this." Ozpin said, watching as she told off the Schnee girl once she caught up. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, Ozpin watched as Qrow rubbed over his eyes with a resigned sigh.

"And she's smart. Who is this girl, Ozpin?" Glynda asked as they both watched her blow up at her partner, everything she said completely accurate to a professional Hunter.

"Have you ever heard of the Grimm Reaper?"

"Of course, that rumour has spread the whole way across the world. Apparently she and her mentor saved a town from fires and Grimm in Patch… just last week…" Glynda drifted off as she realised what his knowing grin meant. "Ruby Rose is the Grimm Reaper?!"

Ozpin just nodded, a small grin painted across his face. "Ruby Rose was raised and trained by some of the best and didn't have the best childhood apparently. She is an amazing Huntress already but doesn't like the attention that her skill and talent would bring her. She had been lucky enough before that nobody could ever match her with her reputation but she won't have that luxury anymore."

Glynda just nodded at the information and walked away, needing to process the fact that she had been deeply underestimating the poor girl she thought was just a lucky sneak, knowing Ozpin and using that connection to get in early. As she passed Qrow though, another thought passed through her mind. "You are her mentor, aren't you? The other half of the slightly odd partnership that is only sometimes there in the stories."

"Yes. I trained Ruby with that scythe since she was ten and would take her hunting sometimes. She's been going out by herself for a couple of years now though. You really don't have any clue who you let into your school, Goodwitch." Qrow responded, grumbling at the woman. Ruby just opened one hell of a can of worms on herself and there was no backing out of it.

"This is most certainly going to be a most interesting year."

* * *

"Why did you think this was a good idea, again?!" Weiss shouted, thoroughly scared and pissed off at the younger girl who somehow talked her into jumping on a massive Nevermore to get the Forest Temple quicker.

"Oh, if you have such a problem with it, then just jump!" Ruby yelled back. It wasn't like she was forced to get on the giant bird, she could have just said no and kept on walking. Deciding she had enough of the whining, Ruby looked down to see they were right above the exact temple they were looking for and informed her partner of that before jumping off.

Falling down, Ruby looked around and saw an incoming Jaune. Thinking quick, Ruby shifted into her rose petals just in time for Jaune to pass right through, and Ruby just gently floated to the ground, reforming once she was only a couple of meters up.

"How could you leave me?!" Weiss screamed, still on the Nevermore's back.

"I said, jump." Ruby said, shrugging helplessly, serves her right. Plus, they just got flung off a cliff and Weiss chose then to be afraid? Not her problem.

"Did your sister just fall out of the sky?" Blake asked, not entirely sure that she saw that properly.

"Yep-" Yang responded with a proud grin, only to be cut off by a growling Ursa as it fell into the field with an explosion. A girl in white and pink rolling off it's back and a dark-haired boy following, puffing in exhaustion.

"Aw, it's broken."

"And did she just come in riding on an Ursa?"

"It would appear so." Ruby confirmed, noticing that said girl and her partner were the ones she was watching that morning.

It wasn't a moment later that the prodigal Pyrrha Nikos crashed through the trees, an Elder Deathstalker chasing her not too far behind. "And did she just run all the way here with a Deathstalker on her tail?"

"Honestly, Blake? I don't think the questions are helping?" Ruby commented as she watched her sister's eyes flicker back and forth between colours before settling on red.

"Grrr! I can't take it anymore! Could everyone just chill out for two seconds before something crazy happens again?!" Yang yelled, fire blazing around her as she paced.

Two seconds was all she got though before the orange haired girl, 'Nora' apparently, tapped Ruby's arm and pointed up. Following Nora's finger, everyone looked up to see Weiss still hanging onto a Nevermore claw with one hand, only for her to lose her grip and slip.

"She's falling." Ren blandly stated, watching the girl uselessly wave her arms.

"She'll be fine." Ruby responded, she too watching the useless flapping.

"Still falling."

At that, Ruby just gave the boy a side glance, their eyes meeting. "Really? We just got flung off a cliff side, if she can't land this I don't want to know how she did the first time."

Ren just shrugged and nodded in response and watched as another blonde boy stupidly leapt out of a tree to catch the falling girl, both of them landing harshly on the ground. Glancing back at the smaller girl in red and black, both thought the same thing, ' _I'm surrounded by idiots'._

Just as Pyrrha landed harshly in front of the group and the last two walked over, Yang grumbled something about dying together when Ruby realised that they didn't haven't to die. "Look, we had an objective; get the relic, get back to the cliffs and don't die. So, let's get a relic, get back to the cliffs, and  _not_  die."

"Run and live. That is a plan I can get behind." Jaune agreed, nodding as though it was the greatest idea ever said.

Quickly grabbing a piece each, Ruby picking the same as her sister in hopes of her thinking matching Ozpin's and the two pairs making a four-man team, the group set off for the cliffs. Everyone was by then already exhausted from either chasing or being chased or falling, and made for a slower group. And with everyone together, they made a bigger group too.

Coming up on a cliff face, the only obstacle was the ruins before it and getting up, the Nevermore appeared, sitting itself right at the top of the ruins with a perfect view. Pairing off and hiding behind pillars, everyone watched as it perched at the top and screeched before hearing the sound of crushed trees behind them.

Looking to her sister who had paired off with her, Ruby realised that she could take of them both if she used her eyes, but that would mean bringing out RoseBud in front of everyone and explaining what would happen.

Yang, seeing the question, shook her head at her younger sister and watched as her eyes hardened in concentration. Ruby couldn't let loose something as big as what she would to so many new people without there being backlash. Plus, they would need to get used to killing as teams and working together to take down targets, rather than just relying on Ruby's power.

Ruby nodded to her sister, acknowledging that she wouldn't use her power before taking off for the Nevermore, but they would need a plan.

First though, they needed it to move. It was in the way, where it was. It had too much of an advantage and not enough space to get close and test what it's weaknesses were. Keeping a vague eye on where everyone was and acknowledging who would be best for what, Ruby lead Yang away from the Deathstalker and onto the many bridges, shooting up at the massive bird with Nora to get it moving.

Seeing that it was in the air, Ruby, Yang and Weiss quickly moved up and took aim at the beast as it circled back, each of them firing all they had at it. They paused quickly when they saw Blake on its back but at the information that it was in fact far tougher than it looked, Ruby had to rethink another plan. Hitting hard wasn't working and its feathers were too strong for just bullets or even Dust to get through, so maybe it needed something sharper to make a dent. Watching it crash through the structure they were on, proved to Ruby that even the wings were highly protected by the feathers, the weakest spot would have to be at its throat or at the smaller feathers where the wings connect.

Looking around to see what she had to work with, Ruby came up with a somewhat gamble of an idea, but an idea none-the-less. Telling Weiss to cover her while she informed the others, she set up and pointed out where everything was and where everyone needed to be. "We're only going to get one shot at this and it has to be quick."

They all nodded in agreement before taking off, Yang jumping to the top so that she could get its attention and hopefully send it crashing into the cliff. If all went well, then Weiss would freeze a good portion of its tail down before aiming and shooting her from the make-shift slingshot.

It all went reasonably according to plan too, if a couple of seconds late when Weiss had to freeze its tail. Ruby was worried about it breaking out or just losing a couple of tail feathers; and it almost did before Ruby got the blade of her scythe around its neck and pulled it up the cliff side with the help of some Wind glyphs. Upon reaching the top and having still not felt it give in much, Ruby sent a subtle amount of her power through the blade, just enough to freeze the feathers and feel them shatter before shooting a couple more rounds and yanking her blade up, flipping around to land on her feet at the top of the cliff.

Ruby quickly turned around and squinted down at the groups of Hunters and Huntresses in training to see if any of them were dead. Standing so high up, Ruby couldn't really see any of them but there didn't sound like anyone was screaming in agony so she assumed they were all reasonably okay. Finally sighing a breath of relief, Ruby fell onto her back with a long groan and shuffled backwards until she was a safe distance from the edge. Choosing to take a quick nap while she waited for everyone to make up the cliff side, not even bothering to be bothered at how snappy her partner would be when she made it up.

Once everyone made it up, by their own means or not, the large group slowly made their way along the edge and back to the cliff face they were launched from. They weren't the first or last back but they were the most torn up looking group. Apparently everyone else got all the easy Grimm.

After all the students finally made it back and everyone handed in their 'relic', they were allowed to go back and clean up to get ready for their teaming ceremony. Technically, no one had any idea who was going to be on what team besides their partners, but if Ruby was right in her assumptions – and she usually was – she, Weiss, Yang and Blake would be put on a team. Along with the other four they spent the last half of their day with, the pairs having picked matching chess pieces too.

* * *

Standing in the hall and waiting for their names to be called up, Ruby only half listened as the teams were formed; her hunch was right, he was pairing up the matching pieces. Impressively enough, all the team names were also colours, and for a moment, Ruby had to wonder how he found all the colour names.

"…Jaune Arc. Lie Ren. Pyrrha Nikos. Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR. Lead by… Jaune Arc." Ozpin announced, congratulating the young man before moving on, the last team and certainly from what he'd seen, the most interesting.

"Blake Belladonna. Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee and Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward you will work together as Team RWBY. Lead by, Ruby Rose." Hearing that last sentence, Ruby had to try really hard not to glare at the Headmaster, instead focusing on staying upright as her sister hugged her.

"I'm so proud of you!" Yang shouted, tackling her sister – and team leader – in a hug.

Ruby silently agreed at Ozpin's mumbled, "Looks like things are shaping up to be an interesting year."

Walking away with all the other first year students towards the dorms they were appointed, Ruby looked back slightly to see Ozpin nodding his head to the side slightly, telling her to meet him later. Sighing in resignation, she nodded slightly and continued on her way, shaking her head at her sister when she looked like she was about to ask.

Finding their dorms wasn't too hard for the group, and Ruby loved that they weren't on the ground floor; she always had a weird love of heights. Each of them picked a bed for the night, choosing to sleep instead of unpacking because that just sounded like far too much effort after the day they all had.

Weiss had been giving everyone the silent treatment the time after the ceremony, only speaking to claim a bed and nothing else. While it was annoying to be around the spoilt girl, Ruby used her as an excuse to go for a walk, claiming she just needed some time alone and that she wanted to explore the campus. Yang; having known that Ruby already knew the campus and was probably going to see what Ozpin wanted with her, nodded happily and told her to have fun. The other two followed suit, not bothering to offer her any company.

Quickly walking out the door and to the stairwell, jumping over the railing and casually fluttering down the floors as rose petals before reforming again at the bottom, a happy little smile on her face at the possibility to do that every day. Using her semblance for her was something of a thrill with her new discovery; it offered her a freedom that she didn't otherwise have. She could float and drift however she wanted, wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted. Ruby had always been jealous of her Qrow's ability to fly, to just take up the form of a bird and fly away. While she was a little less inconspicuous as a bright red bunch of swirling petals, it was still freedom for her.

Sneaking her way across the campus, sticking to all the good hiding spots that she had found as a child that hadn't been fixed, Ruby made her way up to Ozpin's office. Offering a quick hello to Delilah – who still worked as the receptionist at the main desk – Ruby snuck into the stairwell that not many knew about. Technically it was an emergency stairwell to Ozpin's office but everyone likes the elevator better, which makes lot of sense because his office was at the top but still. Ruby liked to, on occasion, surprise everyone once in a while and the stairwell was the best bet; that and it's less obvious than walking into the elevator straight to his office.

Turning back into her petals, Ruby felt the slight draft through the small and narrow passageway and followed it up, taking the easy way up the annoyingly large number of floors. Reaching the top in only a matter of minutes, Ruby reformed and patted down her skirt, making sure that she looked presentable before slowly opening the door at the back of the room.

Sticking her head in slightly, Ruby was shocked to see her Qrow, Professor Goodwitch, Ozpin and even a holographic General Ironwood. "Am I interrupting something?" Ruby called out, as she walked the whole way through the door, but didn't go into the room.

All four adults turned at the sound of her voice, all but Qrow and Goodwitch surprised to see her by the door to the stairwell. Ozpin shook his head and motioned her over, taking a sip from his mug. "No Ruby, we were all just waiting for you. It appears that you have some explaining to do…"


	5. Chapter 3 - The Talk(s)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The long awaited talk. Finally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To all my terribly loyal and amzing followers. I am pleased to finally be announcing the 5th chapter of this long and tedious story(Tehe). I am soooooooo very sorry to all of you who have waited patiently and not so patiently for this chapter and I hope it lives up to your standards. It took 3 rewrites of just the first half of the chapter and another two of the second for this thing to finally be finished, so here it is guys. 
> 
> Thank you all for all your support!

Looking at all the very serious faces in the room, Ruby realised that she was very, very screwed.

"Cookies." Ruby swore to herself as she slumped a bit against the doorframe and looked to the ceiling. Grumbling to herself at herself, Ruby looked back at the others in the room when she heard a familiar laugh.

"However good it is to see you again Ruby, I would have to agree. You've managed to get yourself into quite the situation this time, haven't you?" General Ironwood chuckled, holding his hand up at about his shoulder waiting for their usual greeting.

Ruby sighed and stood up straight, nodding in reluctant agreement, before grinning and racing over to the holographic man. Leaping up, Ruby reached up and high-fived his waiting hand, spinning in the air before she landed and pulled out her Sai's, pointing them at the General as she fell. Landing on the ground with a slide, Ruby looked up to see he too had pulled out his Revolver and had it pointed at her in return, a matching grin on his face.

"James won again, Ruby. Although you were close." Ozpin announced from his seat at his desk, sipping his mug occasionally.

Ruby slumped forward in defeat, groaning. "Dang it, I really thought I had you that time, James."

The general just laughed and returned his weapon to its holster, watching Ruby do the same. "One of these days Ruby, I'm sure you'll beat me."

"Yeah, yeah. It's really nice to see you again, though. We haven't talked in ages." Ruby replied, walking back to the man to give him a regular high-five as she walked past to sit in the empty armchair facing Ozpin's desk.

Moving to stand at the side of the large desk, the General nodded in agreement. "No, we haven't, and with school starting back, I have a bunch of student field assignments that I could use some help analysing when you want. We have so many new teams that keeping on top of the more senior teams is becoming a bit of a handful."

"Isn't that what you have other teachers and secretaries for, James? What would your council do if they found out that you have been consulting with a first year from another academy? And a child no less, how could you?" Ruby mocked, grinning at the older man before shrugging. "Besides, now that I've started with Beacon and have a team and classes and because  _someone_ ," Sending a quick glare at Ozpin, who just raised his mug in acknowledgement, "annoyingly appointed me team leader, I don't think I'm going to be having much free time on my hands for a while. Sorry."

"Not at all, though I guess now I will have to use those other teachers and secretaries you said. How annoying. On another note though, congratulations. I heard you got an early admittance, but nobody had told me you got named team leader. I'm certain you were the most experienced."

"By a long shot." Qrow added, cutting into the conversation as he leaned against the side of the desk. "But what I'm more interested in is how you two know each other."

"I would like to know that as well." Goodwitch added from the other side, glancing at the calmly seated man. "You didn't introduce them, did you?"

"Oh, Ruby and I have known each other for a few years now. I saw her hiding behind one of the pillars on one of my last in person visits here and because you didn't seem to notice, Goodwitch, and Ozpin clearly didn't seem to mind, I didn't say anything. I called her out after you left and was going to yell at her for listening in on the conversation when Ozpin asked her what she did wrong and moved on, not even batting an eye at her presence. She ended up just watching us as we worked and started asking questions, by the end of it she was pointing out different perspectives to some of our problems. Unofficially she's been helping me with academy related tasks during her spare time with me, and officially she's been the Atlas Special Forces Anonymous Handler for some of the smaller missions. I've only ever interrupted her normal schedule twice and those were emergencies, other than that, she's only ever worked during the holidays and on occasional weekends."

"And what, she's free labour or something?" Qrow asked, both impressed and annoyed at the new information he's received.

"Not at all. Ruby has been working and payed on commission for each mission she handles. It gets paid into an account made for her in Atlas."

"Wouldn't you need parental permission at the least for her to be working?" Goodwitch asked, annoyed at just how deeply misinformed she had been about the child.

"Yep, I told dad all about it and he said it was fine, so long as I wasn't actually in the field for any of the missions and that my name not be mentioned in case the teams make any enemies." Ruby cut in, bouncing a little on her chair. Qrow cut her a quick, questioning look before shrugging, knowing that was a blatant lie and would ask her later.

"And as interesting as all this is, that wasn't the reason we're all meeting up here so shall we move this along?" Ozpin added, catching the look and changing the subject.

"Right…. that." Ruby sighed, slumping back into the chair. "So, what do you know?"

"They don't know anything, Rubes. Only what they saw during the initiation, and they don't have to know everything, but you made a dangerous move today and it's gonna take some explaining." Qrow explained, his tone gentle but his lazed stance the same.

Ruby shrunk into herself a little as she thought over what she would say, and what she knew they needed to hear. "I'm not quite sure where to start, honestly."

Watching Ruby curl up on the chair, Ozpin pulled up the footage from when she ran into the fire and froze it on a shot of all three Dust Glyphs, some of the Grimm disintegrating in the background. "How about you start with this. What exactly were you doing in the fire?"

"And what exactly are those weapons you were using?" Goodwitch huffed, "They were not in your student file, as they should have been."

"Oh, that's easy. Those two are what I call RoseBud. They are transforming Sai blades, dual blades and connected, make a staff." Pulling out the weapons in question, Ruby flicked through the transformations for Goodwitch to see. "I've embedded Dust Crystals into the handles, 2 of each crystal type per handle, and I use them in tandem with the blades themselves. I have to order them special from the Dust shop we met at, because for them to work better, I need the crystals raw and unprocessed."

"I will be adding that to your student files after this." Goodwitch stated, making notes about them so she won't forget.

"No, you will not." Jumping from her seat, Ruby raced over and snatched the scroll out of the professor's hands, deleting all the information she had inputted as she raced back to her seat.

"How dare you? Give that back immediately!" Goodwitch shouted, stomping over to the girl. "You have no right to keep that information hidden from everyone here at the academy. That is there for all the other students to know just who and what they are going up against in their classes, and how their teammates work. You keeping information like that from them is unfair to everyone."

Vaulting over the back of her chair, Ruby backed away from the raging lady, deleting all she could find about herself of the lady's Scroll as she went, making sure that only the simplest of base information was available, making her on par with the rest of the first years. "No, it's not. Crescent Rose is my primary weapon for all my schooling, and that includes Beacon. I won't use RoseBud in classes or on field missions unless it is an emergency and we don't have another choice." Having made her way around the desk and just past Ozpin, she threw the Scroll to him as she finished and vaulted over his desk too, putting the furniture between her Goodwitch. "And I know just how many people would be able to get their hands on all my private information if I were to give it to you, and I know how easy it would be for any potential enemies to get that information too. You of all people should be able to understand having the upper hand on any potential enemies, so I'm not sorry if I don't feel like telling the world that I can wield a weapon other than a scythe, or that I am highly proficient in Dust or that I can harness my Silver eyed power in battles!"

Huffing a few breathes, Ruby sat back down on her chair with a slump, waiting for one of the others to say something. Realising that the only sound she could hear in the room was her own breathing, Ruby looked back up at the others, only to see their very shocked faces.

"Whelp, there it is. Good going Rubes." Qrow commented, breaking the silence and stretching his back over the desk.

Looking back at what she said, Ruby groaned and slid down the chair, her head tilted back to stare at the ceiling. "Sugar honey ice tea. Cookies. Cake Crumbs. Fudge Sticks. Crap….."

"And now she gets it."

"Not helping Qrow…"

"I know."

Looking back at Ozpin, Ruby groaned again, before shifting to sit cross legged in her chair. "Just ask it."

"Silver Eyed powers?" Ozpin croaked.

"Are you asking me what it is or what I know?"

"What you know."

"The silver eyed warriors were a legendary linage of warriors who possessed special abilities through their eyes. They were said to be from before even Huntsmen and the kingdoms, and were so fierce that they could strike a Grimm down with a single look. I'm assuming that was in reference to the strange powers that they possessed in their eyes. The only other silver eyed warrior I knew of was Summer Rose, my dead mother."

"And you possess these powers too? At such a young age?"

"You sound shocked. What exactly did you think was happening to the Grimm? They just fluttered away in the wind naturally?"

"Ruby." Qrow groaned, taking a swig from his flask.

"What? It was a stupid question. I'm allowed to answer stupid questions with stupid responses." Ruby responded, her tone getting higher as her hands started pulling at the end of her cape. "Plus, he was the first person to acknowledge my silver eyes, you'd think that he'd know what I was talking about. Even Mummy said that he would know. Why doesn't he sound like he knows? Qrow? Why is he so confused?! I should be the one confused! Not him! Mummy said he could help me! Why doesn't he sound like it?! Qrow-!"

Hearing Ruby build herself up into a nervous breakdown, Qrow leapt over to the crying girl, slamming into her chair and pulling her into his lap as he landed on the floor. Rocking them slightly, Qrow pulled Ruby in tight to his chest, leaning over and resting his cheek on her head. "It's okay Ruby. It's fine. He's not confused about that, it's just a surprise to know you can do so much. Remember when I first found out? I was really shocked too. It'll be fine. Oz's just being a bit of an idiot at the moment. He'll snap out of it soon, I promise."

Ozpin flinched back his desk at the harsh glare the other man sent him and the sound of being called an idiot. Nobody had called him an idiot in a long time, but this seemed to be an adequate situation to start again. Seeing James move to his side quietly, Ozpin tried to give the caped pair as much privacy as he could.

"I don't think I've ever seen her cry… I don't think I've ever seen her upset before actually." James quietly expressed, turning to face the seated man.

"Surely, you've seen her upset before, she's still just a child." Goodwitch hissed slightly, still annoyed at the girl for stealing her Scroll.

"No, he's right." Ozpin sighed, "I've only ever seen truly upset once and even then, she was silent. Ruby is surprisingly strong under stressful situations and such. This is the first time I've ever seen her actually cry… It's rather upsetting."

"Sometimes it's difficult to remember that she's only 15, with all the work that she's done." James sighed, looking back at the red caped pair.

Ozpin just hummed in agreement, and went back to watching the emotional moment on the floor, ignoring Glynda's huff. He still couldn't hear anything, but all three adults watched in confusion as Qrow gently shifted Ruby to sit on the floor, before carefully unclipping her cape and draping it across the chair behind them.

The hunter's confusion continued before Ozpin saw Qrow start to pull off his cape too. Instead of laying it on the chair though, he wrapped it around the girl's shoulders and clipped it on where hers had just come off.

"What is he-"

"Ruby finds a lot of comfort in Qrow cape, always has. Its why she wears a red one, to always fell like he's with her and to feel safe when he's away. I guess in a situation when she doesn't strictly feel safe or needs a lot of comfort, Qrow lets her wear his. He's told me about a few times he's done it, mostly around anxiety attacks like this one." Ozpin said, cutting off Goodwitch and whatever opinions she may have had about the situation.

"We let a student who has Anxiety into the academy? What if she freezes or has an attack in the field. This is a dangerous situation to be putting the other students in." Glynda hissed.

"You've seen how she reacts in the field, did any of it look she froze or had an attack? And what about when I just told you she's extremely responsive under stressful situations. She's been working for me for almost a year now Glynda and she's never had an attack as a Handler. Ruby is an amazing Huntress already, and she doesn't need your judgements or approval to make it as a fully qualified one either." James snapped back, careful to keep his voice down. Not caring for a response, James turned back to Ruby to see Qrow whisper something quietly to her before kissing her on the forehead.

Ruby had started to calm down after the first few minutes, the steady sound of Qrow's voice and the reassuring feeling of his arms comforting her. Having chosen to ignore the other three people in the room, Ruby shuffled deeper into Qrow's embrace, and mindlessly listened to his voice. She pulled back slightly when she felt him tap her arm, trying to get her attention.

"I know you don't want to do this, but you're gonna have to tell them what they need to know, and that may be everything." Qrow whispered into her hair, and winced slightly at the small whimper she released. "I know, I know… but it has to be done."

"Stay?" Looking up at him from his lap, Ruby tried to beg him with her eyes, a few tears building at the thought of being alone to face them all. "Please?"

Qrow sighed and nodded, knowing that he could never win when she was upset and giving the puppy eyes. "Alright, just put those away, they're an unfair advantage. I would have done it anyway."

Shifting her off his lap, Qrow was pleased when he reached around for her cape, to see a small smile on her lips, which only grew when she realised what he was doing. Unclipping her cape and placing it on the chair, Qrow unclipped his cape and wrapped it around her shoulders, replacing hers and tying it to her top. Giving her a quick kiss on the forehead, Qrow transformed into his bird form and hopped onto her shoulder, rubbing his head against her cheek.

Giggling slightly when he nipped at her ear, Ruby sighed, taking a deep breath before slowly standing and moving back into her chair. Looking up at each of the other adults, Ruby huffed at their horrendously obvious 'discreet' looks they were giving. "I…. I'm sorry for freaking out… I don't usually lose it like that anymore. In front of people at least." Looking down to Qrow in her lap, who nudged her slightly in encouragement, Ruby took another deep breath in before looking back up.

"I'm going to tell you everything you need to know…. And it's going to hurt. And it might take a little while but please don't interrupt me. I'd also like to ask that all the footage you have of my using my power to be deleted. I can't have that kind of stuff out there for people to access." Looking between the remaining three adults, Ruby looked to Ozpin, who nodded gently for her to continue.

"My name is Ruby Rose, and I am the last silver eyed warrior in the world that I know of. When I was 2 years of age, I had a nightmare in the middle of the night about a big bad man chasing my Mummy through a forest and went out to look for her. That night, I watched as the man named Hazel pinned my mother to a tree with a dagger before leaving her to die alone in the snow, presumably for her body to be torn up and eaten by Beowolves. In her last dying moments, Summer Rose gave me her Sai's and a message to never trust anyone but Qrow and Ozpin with the secret of my eyes. A secret I almost wish I didn't understand. That night, when I was crying over my dead mother, surrounded by a pack of Beowolves, I managed to simultaneously activate my Aura, Semblance and Silver eyed power where I froze the Grimm and raced home in a flurry of rose petals, before I passed out on the porch swing where I was found by Qrow. Nobody knew about any of that until quite a few years later when I got lost in the city and found myself at Beacon Academy where I met Ozpin and started sneaking away to each month. Somehow, I managed to convince Ozpin to teach me how to use RoseBud, when they were a much simpler version of themselves. Eventually the lessons moved on to other forms of training, like hand to hand and Aura manipulation. Unfortunately, Ozpin wouldn't teach me about Aura – the practical application anyway – until my Aura had manifested on its own. He didn't want to force it, which would have been fine if I wasn't an impatient child and didn't go straight home and start pestering Qrow until he agreed, which is where we realised that my Aura was already unlocked. My training from there progressed rather quickly, getting different lessons from both Ozpin and Qrow and applying them to the other one's lessons but thankfully, nobody noticed. It wasn't until I was 10 when anyone found out about the Sai's and my powers – which was an emotional time all around. From then on, Qrow has been helping me train with everything, teaching me about the Scythe and touching up and working through whatever Ozpin would have taught me in my latest visit. I went through all of my schooling only using Crescent Rose, and I will continue to do so without anyone else knowing that I have a secondary weapon." Ruby finished with a sigh, looking down at her lap, not wanting to see the others faces.

"Tha- that was a lot to take in…" James said, looking to the floor as he tried to process everything he just heard.

"If you want a summary: I am extremely good at what I do and have been doing it for years." Ruby grumbled, as she watched Goodwitch's face flick between disbelief, sadness and frustration. "Did you have any more questions?"

"I- I think that just about covers it…" Goodwitch breathed, her mind still going too fast to truly answer.

"I have one." Ozpin spoke, leaning forwards on his elbows over his desk slightly. "Summer said that you could trust only Qrow and I. Why did you tell Qrow and not me?"

"I didn't tell him, he found out. I didn't really have much of a choice after he caught me red handed with RoseBud one day."

"Okay, but why not tell me later? Why keep this such a secret from me?"

Looking up from her lap at his almost betrayed tone, Ruby couldn't hold back the hopeless look she wore, hoping to all hell that she wouldn't lose his friendship. "Because you were safe." Ruby tried to explain. At his confused face, she continued. "It was so nice to just come up and visit you, and leave behind all my problems at Patch. And the first time I wasn't even sure that you were who I thought you were, but then I thought that you would react like Dad did. I didn't want you to look at me and see the face of a dead woman; I didn't know how close you were to her and I didn't want to risk it. I didn't want that here. I wanted training and hugs and cookies and long talks about nothing."

"I wouldn't have said anything, or forced you to do anything, Ruby. I don't understand why you felt the need to hide from us here." The hurt in his voice coming though plainly now, and it hurt Ruby to hear.

"Do you have any idea how many times I almost got myself killed?" Ruby asked, looking straight into his eyes. "Do any of you?!"

Looking to the other two and seeing them avert their gaze, Ruby was starting to get angry. "The power of the Silver eyed warriors is activated and highly unstable when the holder is in an unstable emotional state. Do you have any idea how many times a child is emotionally unstable? A Lot! My powers would just come bursting out of eyes almost every other time I threw a tantrum! I was a toddler! I threw a lot of them, but I learnt very quickly how to not. Because I was far more scared of opening my eyes to the terrifying frozen sculptures of a horde of Grimm than I ever was upset at anything else." Huffing after her rant, Ruby slumped again at the shocked gazes set on her.

"Look, when I came to Beacon – to this very room – to visit you, the only thing that I ever had to worry about was having fun, and I couldn't do that if I was constantly worried about when you were going to turn around and see the face of a dead woman, or a little girl looking for some fun. Even if it was just once a month, just 12 days a year, they were some of the best 12 days I could have ever hoped for, and I wouldn't change a thing about it. Not now, not ever." Ruby practically begged the man to understand, because she really couldn't stand to lose him as her friend. Not right then, not when everything was changing so drastically.

"I… I guess I can understand that." Ozpin finally sighed after a minute of thinking, slumping slightly also. "It's just so shocking to think about a child – any child – having such an unstable power like that at such a young age…"

"Yeah, me too." Ruby mumbled, choosing to pet Qrow instead of looking up.

Clearing his throat lightly, Ozpin turned to face the General and Glynda. "As much as we still have much more to talk about, I do believe that it's getting late and Miss Rose has a team that she should be getting back to. James, a pleasure to see you as always."

The General nodded back and looked over to Ruby, waving slightly. "It was nice to see you again Ruby. Give me a call when you're free and we can go over those plans."

Ruby agreed and waved goodbye to the man as his hologram faded, leaving everyone looking at Goodwitch. Glynda huffed and nodded farewell to Ozpin, swiping her Scroll off the desk as she walked past to get to the elevators. "Professor Goodwitch?" Ruby called after the woman.

Turning at the sound of her name, Glynda looked back to see Ruby staring at her expectantly. "Yes?"

"The footage?" Ruby asked.

"What about it?"

"Id prefer it if you could delete it, thank you. That is dangerous footage to have around."

Goodwitch only harrumphed before snappily deleting the footage and showing them the screen before stalking onto the waiting elevator.

"Was she really gonna walk out of here and not delete it?" Ruby asked, as she turned back to Ozpin, both of them watching as Qrow hopped off her lap and turned back into his human form, leaning against the desk.

Ozpin hummed in response, but it was Qrow who spoke. "Probably. She doesn't much like me and with the lack of respect you've been showing her, I don't think she likes you too much either."

"Respect is earned. She has not in any way earned mine, I don't care if she's a teacher or not." Ruby huffed, slumping back into her chair and sliding down until she was practically falling off.

"Yeah, I know Rubes. No need to tell me, just keep an eye on her because she may try to make your life a little difficult." Qrow replied, leaning back on the desk and slumping into a similar position as the younger girl.

"If you two are just gonna flop all over my furniture you may want to try a bed, I hear it is much more comfortable." Ozpin said after a few moments of silence, having watched both of them practically turn into puddles on his furniture. He regretted his wording almost immediately when not just one, but two pairs of curious eyes turned lazily to face him, identical eyebrows raised on both.

"Are you offering yours, because I would love to." The surprisingly not Qrow sounding voice asked after a moment.

Ozpin turned a surprised look to the girl half off the chair with her eyes closed, shocked at the comment that sounded like it should have come from Qrow.

Not hearing a response after few seconds, Ruby opened her eyes to see Ozpins shocked face and Qrow wearing the same expression they both just pointed at the other man. It took a few more seconds for Ruby's face to suddenly turn red as she realised just what she said. "Not like that! I'm tired! I've had a long and tiring day and just want to go lie in a bed. Stop looking at me like that Qrow!"

Qrow just chuckled as her next sentence was cut off by a long yawn, a soft smile forming on his face as she slid even further down the chair, practically sitting on the floor by that point. "Yeah, maybe you need to be getting to bed. You think you can make it by yourself or do you want some help?"

"Help?" Ruby asked softly, as she shuffled her way across the floor to lean against his legs, her eyes falling closed again as his hand reached down and started petting her hair, her ultimate weakness.

Ozpin watched as Ruby practically fell asleep were she was sitting on the ground, leaning against his lovers' leg as he stroked her hair, a soft smile on his face. "It really has been a very long day, for everyone. Why don't you take her back to her dorm? Her scroll should have her room number and it's late enough for nobody else to be awake. I'll wait for you back here." Ozpin said, as he watched Qrow pick her up, one arm beneath her knees and the other under her neck. Picking up her Sai's and cape from the chair, Ozpin carried them back and placed them on her stomach and watched as she automatically clung to them in her sleep.

"This is going to be really hard for her, isn't it?" Ozpin asked, brushing a stray lock of hair away from her face as she turned and nuzzled into Qrow's chest.

Looking up from the girl, Qrow could only nod sadly in agreement, before pulling her even closer. "I know that she has always tried her best to look happy around others but it's a fact that she just doesn't know how to make friends." He admitted sadly. As much as she tried, Ruby never really had any close friends that she could hang out with on a regular basis and it really did affect her.

Both men just shared a look before Qrow made his way across the room to the elevator. It was late, and everyone had an exhausting day so the chances of anyone but the staff seeing was slim to none.

Making his way out of the elevator, Qrow nodded hello to Delilah as he passed before swiftly walking across the campus to the first-year dorms. It was a quick trip up the stairs, although it took a second to juggle Ruby around to get her Scroll, but it all turned out to be for nought as the door opened not a second after he arrived, to a tired but smiling Yang.

"Hey Firecracker, think you can help me out a little here?" He whispered, shifting past her quietly and turning to his niece.

Yang just smiled at the pair, before gently grabbing her sister like her uncle was and placing her on her bed. She had been waiting up for Ruby to come back, a little worried about how long she had been gone. Yang knew that she was with Ozpin though, so she wasn't too worried, but when the others were long since asleep and her eyes were drooping, she was glad to hear shuffling outside the door.

It was a surprise though, to see her Uncle Qrow standing there with a sleeping Ruby in his arms. They did make quite a cute image though, Qrow fumbling around for he Scroll while being as subtle as possible because he didn't want to wake the exhausted girl.

Yang put her sister in her bed before turning back to her Uncle, who had decided to lean against the doorway while she got Ruby under the covers. "I thought you'd be consoling Dad for a few more days."

"You and I both know that most of those tears was for Ruby's sake. As much as she doesn't like to see him cry and doesn't know how to deal with him, Tai knew that she wouldn't be as confident if it seemed like he was happy to be rid of her." Qrow responded quietly, turning to look at the sleeping girl with a sigh,

Yang could only agree, as even she knew that he got all his moping done in that week before they left. "Yeah, but still. Did you watch the initiation?"

"Yep, got there just in time to crash into Ruby – which hurt like a bitch by the way. That's what the talk was about, she pulled out RoseBud and used her eyes and got caught on tape. The footage is deleted and nobody but the important people know but it was an emotional conversation."

"I can imagine, if it was anything like the one that happened when we discovered them. Are you gonna be hanging around or are you set to take off soon?"

"I'm gonna be around for the next few days but you won't see me. So, this is actually goodbye for now. You should really be getting to bed too, I'll see you later, Firecracker." Qrow said, leaning down and kissing her forehead before slipping back out the door and down the hall.

"See ya, Uncle…" Yang replied to the empty doorway before turning back with a sigh and hopping back into bed, after closing the door.  _'Such a looooooong day.'_

* * *

Waking up the next morning still in her clothes and Qrow's cape, Ruby revelled in the warmth for a little while longer before getting up for the day. It was very early in the morning, the last of the dawn light filtering through the curtains and Ruby could still see her other three teammates still asleep.  _'Probably a good thing too. Can't imagine what the Schnee would be like if she saw I fell asleep in my clothes.'_

Shrugging off the thought, Ruby trudged her way to the shower to start getting ready for the day, wondering how she was going to return Qrow's cape to him.

Getting an early start to the day did wonders for Ruby. Although they were almost late to their first class, the day seemed to be moving on in a swift and enjoyable manner for the younger girl, until of course, Professor Port's class. Ruby had been warned by the majority of team CFVY that his classes were boring, but she didn't think they would be that bad, sitting in class though, changed her mind.

With his droning voice and lack of interesting topics, Ruby soon found herself fidgeting, tapping her fingers and doodling. Her fingers were just itching to grab RoseBud, but she knew she couldn't and Ruby had only brought one pen with her, it wasn't until Yang tossed her a couple of her spare pens over Weiss' head that she settled a little.

Weiss was not happy with her fidgeting partner and having her boisterous sister throwing pens over her head was making her down right angry.  _'Honestly, if she can't sit still like an adult than she shouldn't be in a school to train adult huntsmen.'_

It didn't get much better when her  _partner_  started to spin the silly pens in her hands, making them look almost like a propeller.  _'And now she's playing with them?! How immature can she be?'_

Entirely unimpressed with her so called team leader, Weiss jumped at the first chance she could to prove herself better than the younger girl, volunteering for an in-class demonstration. It didn't go nearly as well as she had hoped, having lost Myrtenaster halfway through the fight and her insufferable leader had actually decided to start paying attention, telling her how to fight the stupid Grimm. Having stabbed the Grimm through it's stomach, begrudgingly like her leader had said, she was exhausted and thoroughly annoyed at the girl, enough so to blow up at her in the hall.

"What's wrong with me?! What's wrong with you? You're supposed to be a leader and all you've been is a nuisance. You've done nothing to earn your position and now you think you can just sit there and fidget like a grade schooler? I've studied and trained, and quite frankly, I deserve better than to be in a team lead by you. Ozpin clearly made a mistake."

Turning away from the younger girl, Weiss didn't let her say a word before she stomped off down the hall to see Professor Port standing on one of the balconies.  _'Finally, an adult I can talk to. Surely he'll agree that I'm a much better leader for the team.'_

* * *

"Well that was rather harsh, wasn't it?" Ruby heard from behind her. Turning around, Ruby looked up to face Ozpin.

"It was, but maybe now that she's gotten it out, she'll calm down a bit?" Ruby shrugged, looking over to see that Weiss had found Professor Port and was likely saying much the same thing she just did to Ruby. "Or not…"

"At least you're not asking if she was right."

"You wouldn't have known if you'd made a mistake this early in the year, plus, you know what your doing when you appoint leaders. If you thought I was the best person to lead the team than maybe I am. I also think you appoint leaders based off need too, because I know that Jaune has no leadership skills in him at all, but you've appointed him. So maybe you see something in me that needs a role like leader to bring it out."

"I forget how perceptive you are sometimes, but you are right. It is too early, and I am hoping that you'll flourish in the leadership role you've got but only time will tell. Just remember that the role of a leader is not just a title you take into battle, but a badge you wear constantly." Ozpin warned, taking a sip from his mug.

Noticing the action, Ruby tried to see into it, asking with a grin. "So, what are you drinking today, Headmaster?"

"If you have to know, Miss Rose, it's coffee. Yesterday was a long day and the night being not much shorter. I thought a nice cup of coffee would do me well." Ozpin replied with barely a straight face.

"But headmaster, it's well into the afternoon. Surely your night wasn't so long that you still need coffee now." Ruby's grin growing wider by the second.

"Hush now Mis Rose, the duties of a Headmaster are long and tedious. I had much work to do last night. And this is only the second cup of coffee I've had thank you, I also happen to like the taste." Ozpin replied, his face of innocence perfectly formed while he took another sip of his drink.

"Oh, I'm sure they must be, Headmaster. Would you mind if I came up to your office this evening? I'm sure your  _long_ and  _tedious_ dutieswould like his cape back." Ruby's face morphing into one of innocence as she spoke, only to crack and bend over laughing as Ozpin chocked on his sip and started coughing.

"Ruby!" Ozpin managed to gasp out through his coughing fit, only to make the girl laugh even harder.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'll stop now, I promise. I should go make a start on my homework though so I'll see you later. I am okay to come around this evening yes? I really would like to return his cape." Ruby giggled, calming down as his coughing fit ended.

After calming down and taking another sip to sooth his throat, Ozpin nodded and reminded her that it has to be before curfew. No special rules just because they are friends.

With a nod and a small playful salute, Ruby turned and wondered off down the hall, her quiet giggles echoing slightly in the halls as she made her way back to her dorm.

Shaking his head, Ozpin headed in the opposite direction, down to the courtyard where a certain Qrow flew down to join him.

"That girl is a menace to my health and so much less innocent than I remember. I'm glad she's doing okay though, I was worried about her after last night, but she seems fine. Did you see what happened with her partner? I didn't quite expect her to be so self-entitled, though I don't know why with her name."

Having transformed back, Qrow walked along side his lover through some of the more covered areas of the school. "Yeah. I know that Winter isn't exactly the nicest, but she still has respect for others. I didn't think her younger sister would turn out to be such a little spoiled brat though."

"Well, Ruby seems to be taking it better than most would, to be partnered with someone so against them as a teammate and team leader."

"Eh, she's used to it. She got it a lot at Signal, but she learnt that either people are going to accept that she is better, or they are going to waste their energy trying to prove her wrong, and neither really affects her. Although partnering up with a Schnee will definitely help build some sort of a back bone in her." Qrow shrugged, knowing that Ruby is most likely going to have to put up with it for most of her life.

"That is true. She also said that she'll be by this evening to drop off your cape if you didn't hear."

"Good, it feels almost weird to not be wearing it. And no, I didn't hear. I decided to follow the Schnee and see what she was doing. She tried sucking up to Port, thinking he'd agree with her about how she should be team leader. I think he put her place though, so Ruby shouldn't be getting too much trouble from her anymore."

"Well that is good to hear, maybe now she'll calm down and stop throwing small tantrums when she doesn't get her way. I should be getting back though, I do actually have duties to take care of as Headmaster." Ozpin sighed, changing direction to head back to his office.

"Yes, long and tedious duties that kept you up last night. I heard." Qrow laughed, before he transformed and flew off, likely to go looking for Ruby.

"Qrow!" Ozpin shouted as he flew away. "So that's were it came from… how annoying."

* * *

Having gone through the little homework that was set for them, Ruby started looking through the curriculum for the res of the semester, and got a head start on the studies needed for the classes. Looking over the assessments for the Grimm Studies class, Ruby sighed and started on the essay that wasn't due for another 6 weeks, picking the Grimm she wanted to write about and plotting out her essay structure and what she already knew.

She didn't realise how late it was getting until she heard Weiss clearing her throat at the side of her bed. "Wha- Weiss? What's the time?"

"It's too late, curfew is in half an hour though and you're still in your uniform?"

"I was studying and lost track of time, I'm sorry-" Ruby started to apologise when Weiss cut her off with a hand over her mouth. She would have tried struggling if it weren't for Weiss' next words.

"How do you take your coffee?"

Looking over to her empty and mug, Ruby sighed and shook her head. "I don't-"

"Just answer the question."

"Look, thanks but no thanks. It's getting late and need to do something before curfew so I won't be having another one."

"Fine, but don't you be making a lot of noise when you get back, I need sleep to be able to function properly. What are you doing anyway that can't wait until tomorrow? Making it back before the curfew isn't going to be easy."

"It probably won't be but I'm just returning something I borrowed, and they don't usually go long without it and I promised I'd give it back tonight. I'm fast though so I'll be fine. I'll make sure I'm super quiet, you won't even hear me come in." Ruby promised as she sat up and stretched, reaching back to pack away her books. She didn't expect anything else from the talk, so she hopped off her bed and made her way to the door, grabbing Qrows cape and making sure that her pyjama's were out so that she didn't have to do too much shuffling when she got back.

"Ruby." Weiss called lightly as she was opening the door.

"Yes Weiss."

"I- I think you have what it takes to be a god leader. Just know, that I am going to be the best team mate you will ever have." Weiss expressed, before turning back to get her own pyjama's.

Ruby smiled slightly, before nodding to herself. "Thanks Weiss. I know you don't think much of me but thank you for giving me a chance. I'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah, by the way. I always wanted bunk beds as a kid." Weiss admitted.

"Me too. Goodnight Weiss."

"Goodnight Ruby."

Closing the door behind her, Ruby smiled to herself before she took off in burst of rose petals down the hall and out the open window at the end before floating in the breeze all the way to the base of the tower.

Forming back and walking into the building, nobody else was around so she just took the main elevator up to Ozpins office, rolling forward and back on her feet as she waited for it to make the climb up.

The elevator doors opened to the large room, mostly empty except for the two figures standing by the large glass desk, a little too close to be appropriate in public – if they were in public. Ruby watched silently for a second as Ozpin leaned down to close the small height gap and kissed Qrow, placing his palms on his desk by his lovers' side, effectively trapping him there.

Coughing slightly, Ruby giggled slightly to herself when they both sprang apart with a shocked look on their face. "Looks like someone forgot about little old me." Ruby pouted, "It's not like the elevator doesn't make a ding, you know. You both should have totally heard me coming. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Some Hunters you two are." Ruby grinned, shaking her head sarcastically as she walked into the room. "Plus, it's not like I haven't seen you two kissing, it's nothing I haven't seen before."

"Ruby." Ozpin sighed "I'd apologise but you seem to be enjoying this far too much." Ozpin sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "And it was getting pretty late, I thought you had forgotten or fell asleep and would just bring it up tomorrow."

"You don't trust me? I'm heartbroken Ozpin, truly heartbroken." Ruby sassed as she swept into the office and hopped up on the desk, her legs hanging off the edge and swinging.

"Ruby." Qrow groaned, dragging a hand down his face, feeling immensely awkward having been caught by his not-niece.

"Fine, fine." She sighed, hopping off the desk and walking around to Ozpins chair where both men were standing near, climbing up to stand on the seat and motioned for him to stand in front of her.

"I just wanted to bring this back to you. Thank you for letting me borrow it yesterday, it always helps. I kind of thought you'd start to feel a little odd without it though, so I wanted to give it back today, but I got side tracked by homework." Ruby said as she unfolded the deep red fabric and pinned it back to his shirt, flattening over the edges and flaring out the bottom. "There, all better." She declared.

"Thanks Rubes. It was starting to feel very weird, not wearing it." Qrow replied, turning around and giving her a kiss on the forehead before lifting her off the chair and back onto the floor.

"It's your first day of classes, you shouldn't have much if any homework." Ozpin said, leaning against his desk a couple of feet away giving her pointed look. "You wouldn't have started on some of the other projects already, have you?"

"What? No… maybe. Just a couple!" Ruby replied, looking at her swinging legs. "I got bored. And its only the Grimm studies and Vehicle Combat and Maintenance…"

"Ruby, you haven't even been to the Vehicle Combat and Maintenance class yet. What were you working on? The research assignment?"

At Ruby's silence, Ozpin realised he was actually right. "Oh. You actually were. For some odd reason I thought that maybe you'd be okay with the pace Beacon does things but maybe we'll have to give you some other, extra credit assessments."

"No, it's fine. I just got side tracked with what I was doing, once I start combat training and organise a training schedule for the team I'm sure I'll have less time on my hands. Speaking of which, I was wondering what the policy was on going to into the Emerald Forest when not with a class or on assignment? I like to go and hunt sometimes, mostly to practice with RoseBud, but I wasn't sure about how to go about that up here."

Ozpin acknowledged the change in subject and chose not to comment. "Usually we don't let any students go hunting as none of them are experienced to go by themselves and we don't have enough teachers to supply one-on-one hunting sessions for those who are but in your case, I might just make an exception. You won't be able to go during the week much if at all, but the weekends should be free."

Looking up, Ruby was both pleased and surprised by his answer. She didn't actually think that he'd let her go, but that was sounding pretty good to her. "So, I can go… but only with a chaperon? Who would you send with me? Please don't say Goodwitch."

"Yes, with a chaperon. No, not with Goodwitch. If you'd be okay with it, I will take you out on your hunting missions. You could think of it as our lessons in a more practical application, which is why you won't be able to go out too often as I have many things to attend to as Headmaster."

"Oh yes, all those long and tedious Headmasterly duties." Ruby giggled as she hopped off the desk. "I should probably be heading back now, so I'll let you get back to your  _duties_." Racing in, Ruby gave them both a hug and a kiss on the cheek before racing to the stairwell.

"I'll see you tomorrow or something. Have fun with your duties!" Ruby called as she opened the door and jumped down the gap in the stair well, transforming into her rose petals about halfway down. Floating down to the ground floor and transforming back, Ruby opened the door and crept out, racing through the foyer and into the fresh night air.

Ruby didn't even glance back as she made her way out into the courtyard, trying to ignore the way her heart hurt. As much as she loved both of the men she just walked away from, and she wanted to see them both happy, it still hurt a lot to see them together. It wasn't fair, that she had to be so young and such a child in their eyes. Why couldn't she have been a grown up. Or even just a normal child who didn't understand so much of the world so early in life. Maybe then she wouldn't have fallen in love them and wouldn't have to go through the pain of watching them be together.

Sighing at her utter misfortune in life, Ruby decided that a nice walk in the crisp air would do her well and made her way back to her dorm the slow way.

* * *

"Duties!" Qrow gasped out, laughing so hard he fell from his leaned perch on the edge of the desk. "God that girl is funny sometimes."

"Yeah, yeah laugh it up. Just wait until she turns on you, then we'll see who's laughing." Ozpin replied in a flat tone, turning to look out the windows and down onto the courtyard, waiting for Ruby's petals to make their appearance.

"Nah," Qrow said, casually leaning up against the same window. "She loves me too much to turn on me like that." He had meant it as a joke but both men knew that it hit to close to home for comfort.

"And just like that, it's suddenly not even something you can joke about." Ozpin sighed after a minute, still keeping an eye out for Ruby.

Qrow, having nothing he could say to that, turned to look out at the courtyard below and frowned at the sight of Ruby slowly walking across, having only just left the building. Glancing back to look at the time, Qrows frown deepened when he realised that she only had a couple of minutes before curfew.

Ozpin, having noticed Ruby's slow form too, glanced over at Qrow to see his frown. "She doesn't usually like to take walks, does she?"

"Not usually. Ruby finds a lot of freedom if in her Semblance so for her to be walking, she probably wants to think." Qrow replied, his voice deep in concern.

Due to the height of the tower, details were always a rather difficult thing to determine, but both men knew that they saw her turn to look back up at them, waving a tiny wave at them before she walked into her dorm building.

They were both silent for a minute, not really knowing what to say when Ozpin broke it once again. "Are we going to talk about how you said Ruby loves us or are we going to avoid it for another few days?"

"I don't really know what to say about it. Ruby's loved me for most of her life, and I think she fell in love with you the moment she met you." Qrow responded, moving back to lean against the desk, facing the windows.

"What does she even see in us as a potential love interest? What part of us is appealing to a child? And aren't we kind of old to be even considered?" Ozpin asked, also moving away from the window and to his chair, resting his elbows on the desk.

"Oh, I said that too once, and she knocked it down so fast. She said that you don't age and she found out the first day she met you and that I don't look much different than my team photo taken not long after we graduated so she's got us there." Qrow responded, glancing down at the other man. "And I asked her one time, when she first told me, what she saw in me. I think she said that with me, she feels safe, and cherished and supported and protected. She also said something about being kind and amazing but I'm passing that off as 10-year-old speak. I don't think anyone would classify me as kind."

"This is still sounding like a hero worship almost to me. How do you know it's not?"

"For one, Tai told me the same night Ruby did that he was fairly certain she loved me with all of her little heart, and on this one topic, I'm inclined to believe him." Qrow chuckled.

"And the other point?" Ozpin asked, noticing how he avoided the next point.

Qrow sighed and leaned his head back, choosing to watch the clockwork above them instead of his lover. "And two… If it were a hero worship at any point, then she would have snapped out of it very quickly…"

"Qrow...?"

"At some point in Ruby's life, she figured out that what I do, when I go out on missions, is not just kill Grimm. In fact, in the last couple of years, she's gotten to the point of knowing which ones were just a Grimm killing mission and which ones weren't. I don't know if she knows what it is exactly I do out on the other missions, but she knows it's not good." Qrow stated, trying to keep his emotions out of his voice.

"How does she know…?"

Qrow rolled his eyes at the silly question and stared at his lover from the corner of his eye. "She's perceptive, remember? And after some particularly bad missions, I'll have an occasional nightmare, and you know that sometimes I talk in my sleep."

"That really shouldn't be enough to give much away Qrow. What aren't you telling me?" Turning his chair to face the slouching man, Ozpin tried to catch his eye but failed.

Qrow sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face before answering. "Ever since Ruby was little, if she had a nightmare, I would let her sleep with me when I was home. At some point, Ruby had the thought that it must work both ways because sometimes I would wake up from a particularly bad dream and find her sitting right next to my head, singing whatever little lullaby was her favourite at the time and petting my hair. She'd be in her own bed by the morning we thought nothing of it until I caught her one time and told her off. She just ignored me though and kept on doing it."

Qrow still remembered the first few times she did it, he was too tired and emotional from the dream to really tell her off and just fell back asleep, but the next morning she would always be back in her own bed, so he thought it was just some kind of hallucination. That was until one time when she too had fallen asleep and he had woken up to her curled around his head, her hands still in his hair. He tried to tell her that she shouldn't do it because he could be dangerous when he had nightmares and don't want her to get hurt but she just nodded and left, pretending it didn't happen.

"It kind of then turned into something that would just always happen." Qrow shrugged.

"So, you never told her anything? How would she know what kind of missions you were going on then?"

"Ruby has her own kind of system for making sure I'm okay and has stuck to it pretty religiously for a few years now. It's kind of simple in her own Ruby way but it worked wonders for me. She managed to get me to do other stuff to stop me from drowning myself in alcohol."

It was almost entertaining, watching Ruby go through her process once he found out what it was. First was the tackle hug, to determine both his level of intoxication and if he had any major injuries. Next was the three-day shadowing assignment that she'd set herself to make sure that any injuries he did have were being taken care of properly and if not, she would just hand him the required bandages, creams or ice packs when she thought appropriate. She also used that time to do her own analysis of his mental health and gave him whatever space- or lack thereof - if she thought it was what he needed, and so far, she had always ben right.

"She almost doesn't sound like a child at all… in fact, I don't think I've ever met the young woman you seem to be describing." Ozpin sighed, looking back at his interactions with Ruby, she had always been in exactly the role he thought; smart as a prodigy by free like a child. He'd never encountered the level of maturity that Qrow was explaining. It was disappointing, almost, to still not know all there is about his youngest friend.

"You probably haven't, and most likely because of both need and want. Ruby has always found freedom in coming up here, letting herself be free to be the child she wanted to be. That and she never had the need to try and treat someone with the amount of care and attention that she thinks I require."

Sending a glance at the other man, Ozpin dryly retorted, "Only she thought you needed that?"

"So fine, maybe I knew that I needed it too, whatever." Qrow huffed at his lover's grin.

"You really do love her, don't you?" Ozpin asked, his voice gentle with a small smile as he watched Qrow smile also.

"Yeah, she's the light at the end of all my missions. She was practically the reason I go off to do the missions, knowing that when I get home, Ruby would be waiting for me…" Qrow trailed off, and at seeing Ozpins smile growing he visibly winced when he realised what he said. "Not like that, Oz. I love you, I always will. Ruby is like family to me, she's not… I'm not…"

"Yes, you are. You love her, Qrow, admit it. You may be able to lie to yourself, but you can't lie to me. You love her almost as much as you love me, I can see it." Ozpin smiled, not in the least bit upset with this revelation.

"Maybe, but I could never leave you, Ozpin-" Qrows almost begging tone was cut off as Ozpin stood up and kissed him square on the mouth, silencing the man in the most effective way.

Breaking the kiss slowly, Ozpin smiled down at his dazed looking Qrow, pecking him one more time before moving a step back, his arms still wrapped around the other mans waist. "I don't love you any less for acknowledging that you love Ruby more than the family title you've been trying to push her into, Qrow. And I'm not going to leave you, or make you leave because of it either."

Feeling Qrow start to relax a bit in his embrace, Ozpin continued. "You said that she loves me too?"

At the faint nod, Ozpin smiled again. "Then maybe over time, I too can grow to love our little rose, hmmm? I'll admit, I don't know her like you do but maybe over the next few months I'll get the chance to, we'll see."

"I didn't expect anything like this to happen tonight." Was Qrows only response as he leaned forward and kissed his lover again. "But I can't say that I'm entirely disappointed. Ruby's feelings for us has always been a rather odd topic for me. Especially because being with you has always broken her little heart."

"I can imagine it has, but maybe now that can stop. Not right now, though." Ozpin agreed before tugging Qrow back in for another kiss, this one much deeper than the last. "Right now, I have some long and tedious Headmasterly duties to attend to." Ozpin all but growled, pulling his lover to the elevator, only paying enough attention to press the number for the floor his room was on before pushing Qrow into the elevator wall, kissing down his neck. "Very tedious work."


	6. Chapter 4 - Farewell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Qrow leaves on a mission and a couple more people find out Ruby's secret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good day! This is an update I didn't think I would post for another couple of weeks at least but I couldn't get it out of my head so here it is. There will be another note at the bottom of the story because I just have soooo much to say about this one. Enjoy.
> 
> Word Count: 10,054

Beacon academy, while full of very talented students, was not usually fortunate enough to be in the presence of musical talent, and if it was, they didn't hear much of it. That's not to say that there was no talent among the students at all, Weiss Schnee was an obvious and famous example of such talent not being used, as she did not come all the way to Beacon just to keep singing.

Which would be why, on the last day of the first week of classes, everyone was surprised to hear the faint sound of singing, drifting across the academy in the breeze. From the courtyard and even the classrooms, students and teachers alike could hear the soulful singing, but none could make out the lyrics, the singer too far away to be truly understood.

It was Yang who noticed it first as most of team RWBY and team JNPR were making their way through the courtyard to their next class. Weiss had been complaining about how Ruby had just left through their last class leaving her stuff for others to pick up, claiming the she had a family matter to attend to when she too noticed the beautiful singing.

Checking the time on her scroll as she heard the first line, Yang smiled a small, sad smile to herself, only noticed by Nora who also heard when the blonde shook her head and put her scroll back. "Right on time, as always."

Sliding up next to the blonde as quietly as possible, Nora poked her new friend in the shoulder, getting her attention. "Do you know who's signing?" Nora whispered, figuring that if the blonde wasn't being boisterous about it then maybe she didn't want the others to know.

Yang just nodded slightly and pointed up, looking to the top of the tower where you could only just see a small figure in a flowing red cape standing at the edge of a balcony, facing out towards the edge of the cliffs. Looking even closer, Nora could see the tiny fluttering rose petals flowing in the wind as the singer reached the chorus of the song.

Each of the teens could only just hear the faint lines as the singer grew in volume and passion, and all seven of them could hear the pain and longing in the voice, as they sung on, ignoring the shocked and confused people below.

Looking over to Ren, Nora could tell that he too felt how sad the singer was, and she knew that once she could corner Ruby by herself, she'd give the girl a gigantic Nora Hug and try to make her as happy as she seemed.

Ren, seeing Nora's look, could only nod in agreement as he too looked to the tower where the lonely girl was singing from, and silently promised to help her as much as he could.

Both teams were shocked out of their stupor by Yang, shouting at them as she walked away, that they would be late to their next class if they kept on standing around like that. With that, and a look from Yang, telling her to keep what she told her to herself, Nora bounced over to the blonde, dragging Ren with her as she shouted back to everyone else that they didn't want to miss the next one; it was the combat class.

And like that, the small group moved on, forgetting about the singing and rushing to the next class, not wanting to test Professor Goodwitch's patience, lest she make them clean the arena as she has so frequently said she would.

* * *

Friday of the first week of classes was both a happy and depressing day in one. Waking up that morning, Ruby was glad for the first week of classes to be over and excited to be able to hang out with her new team and maybe go into the forest with Ozpin and maybe even Qrow-

"Bing!" Looking down at her Scroll, Ruby let out a sad sigh at the message she just got.

_'Heading out today. Same time. Sorry kiddo, say bye to your sister for me. Qrow.'_

Or not. Looking over to Yang, who had turned when she heard the Scroll go off, Ruby just chucked her Scroll to her and went to the bathroom to get ready for the day, trying to shrug off the heavy feeling of disappointment that sat in her heart.

Returning to the room in her uniform, Yang gave her Scroll back with a hug. "I'll cover for you in class. It's in the transition period for Goodwitch's class so you might still get some kind of punishment, but I'll try and soften it for you."

"Thanks Yang." Ruby sighed, tucking her Scroll away and falling into the hug her sister offered her. "I was just kind of hoping that he wouldn't leave until tomorrow maybe, but he's needed out there more than he is here."

"Yeah, he is. But don't worry, he always comes back." Yang replied, hugging her sister tight, as if to squeeze all the sadness out of her.

"Yeah, he does." Ruby agreed, taking a deep breath before pulling away from the comforting embrace, giving her sister a smile. "Thanks Yang, and don't worry about Goodwitch, I think she'd punish me just to spite me at this rate."

"Probably. She really doesn't like you much, does she?" Yang asked, pulling her jacket on and heading for the door.

"Nope." Ruby replied, popping the 'p'. Following her sister out the door and down to breakfast, not looking forward to the long day ahead of her.

Yang kept an eye on her little sister the whole morning, knowing that the days when Qrow leaves really affects her sister. So, it was her duty to make sure that Ruby made it through the day; pushing a piece of plain toast to her sister for her to eat and watching to make sure that she did. Yang made sure to be sitting next to her sister in the first few classes too, to make sure that she was okay, watching as her sister would constantly flick her gaze to the nearest clock and back again, barely paying attention to the class.

Sitting through Professor Port's class that day was the hardest thing Ruby had ever done, having to listen to the man drone on about his previous experiences as a Hunter and just begging for the clock to simultaneously speed up and slow down at the same time.

When the time finally came, about 10 minutes before the end of the lesson, Ruby not so subtly started packing away her gear and quite obviously put her hand in the air, practically cutting off the mans impassioned speech.

"Excuse me, Professor. I'm sorry to interrupt but I have some family matters that I need to take care of. Would it be alright if I left early today? Just this once, I promise." Ruby asked, shuffling her feet as she waited for his answer. She was going to leave anyway, whether he allowed her to or not, she just didn't want to cause trouble so early in the semester.

"Why of course child. You've done marvellously in this class so far, I don't see why you can't leave early this one time. Go take care of your family matters." He replied and shot his eyebrows up at how quickly she was to stand and walk straight to the door, not even taking her gear with her.

Turning back once she opened the door, Ruby nodded her head politely to the Professor. "Thank you, sir. I'll see you again next week."

And just like that she was gone, shooting off down the hallway and out the doors of the nearest balcony before turning into her rose petals and floating up and over to the balcony that was attached to Ozpins office.

The trip itself wasn't long but it still cut off a couple of minutes from the time she would get to say goodbye to her Qrow.

Landing softly on the balcony behind a pillar, Ruby listened in for signs of anyone else but Ozpin and Qrow in his office, before moving in. The sound of heels clacking on the tiles moving into the elevator made Ruby very glad that she hid when she landed. She did not want Goodwitch to find out that she wasn't in class because she wanted to see off Qrow.

Ruby was going to wait another minute, just to make sure that no one else was in the office when she heard Ozpin call out for her to come in, telling her that it was just the three of them now. Racing around the pillar and through the doors, Ruby threw herself at Qrow who was standing just in front of the desk, knowing that he'd catch her and nuzzling her head into his chest.

Qrow only grunted slightly at the impact but caught her around the waist just as she knew he would, and hugged her close, burying his face in her hair, taking comfort in her presence.

"Ya know, I almost thought that this would be the first time that I would've left without one of your special goodbyes." Qrow said, pulling back just enough to set her on the ground and lean back against the desk before letting her rest against his chest again between his legs.

"I could never, ever let you leave without saying goodbye first. Ever. You know that." Ruby responded, pulling away too, only to give a small smile with a shrug.

"True, but I've never left during the middle of a class." He pointed out, brushing her hair back from where it flown into her face.

"Nothing would stop me. Not even Goodwitch." Ruby said pointedly, giving him a small glare, only to grin at the way he pulled his arms up in a sign of surrender with a smile.

Ozpin watched with rapt fascination at the interactions between the two of them. Qrow was just telling him before Glynda came in, that this would be the first time that Ruby wouldn't be able to come and say goodbye to him before he left on a mission and was a little surprised to feel her presence suddenly appear on his balcony.

It was even more interesting for him because this wasn't the Ruby he was used to seeing. Maybe the hug tackle was but the way she expressed herself was different. Even in the way she claimed that she wouldn't let anyone come between her and saying goodbye was that of a determined young woman and not a petulant child. It was just a glimpse of the person that Qrow described, and he was almost upset that Qrow wouldn't be around to bring out this character in her for him to see.

Checking the time on his desk, Ozpin sighed internally and lightly cleared his throat, gaining the attention of the two in front of his desk. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Qrow should be leaving soon."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry to cut in on your time together, but I really will never miss a chance to say goodbye to Qrow, especially on long missions." Ruby responded, leaning around Qrow to look at Ozpin, but didn't step away from the loose embrace. Leaning back to look up at Qrow, she smiled slightly and shuffled backwards, awkwardly stepping away towards the doors she had just come through. "I'll wait out on the balcony."

Ozpins eyebrows rose at that, not expecting her to give him time to say goodbye, though he can't figure out why now, having seen how Ruby is around Qrow. Turning to look back at his love, Ozpin smiled fondly at him as he too watched Ruby walk out to the balcony she had landed on. "She really is almost like a different person with you."

"Yeah, she is. It's probably why I love her, I guess." Qrow shrugged, keeping his voice quiet. He didn't want Ruby to hear him quite yet. "You're lucky though, Ruby has always had a rather special way of saying goodbye to me and this time you get to experience it. Trust me, it's beautiful." Qrow mumbled back.

Ozpin wore a confused face for a couple of seconds before shrugging it off. He'll see what that meant soon, he guessed. Walking around his desk, Ozpin moved to stand in the gap Ruby had left and leaned down to press a gentle kiss to his lover's lips. "I hate having to send you out like this." He mumbled, pulling back to press their foreheads together.

"I know, but it's what's needed so we don't really have much of a choice. I'm gonna miss you though." Qrow mumbled back, wrapping his arms around the other man in a gentle embrace.

"I'm gonna miss you too." Ozpin sighed, kissing him again, this time deeper, almost desperately.

Breaking the kiss after a minute, Qrow sighed and pulled away, standing up from his position and leaned across the desk to grab his weapon from where it was resting before straightening once more. "I should get going. If I don't leave now, I'm not gonna end up leaving at all." He sighed, idly noticing the school bell that had just rung.

Ozpin only 'hmmm'd' in response, leaning in for one more kiss before moving away towards the door, Qrow following along silently, 'Solas' strapped to his back on it's usual holster. Walking out onto the balcony, Ozpin admired the view of Ruby leaning against the railing, her head back and her eyes closed, humming a tune he didn't know.

"Hey Rubes." Qrow called, making his way over to her, pausing only slightly when she turned and smiled at him. She really was quite beautiful sometimes.

Looking back at the two men walking towards her, Ruby smiled slightly and turned to face them, pulling out a small flower that she had braided into her hair this morning, handing it to him with a pointed look.

Qrow just chuckled lightly and pushed a small amount of his Aura into the flower, watching the petals open softly and bloom, before handing it back with a small smile.

Ozpin watched, intrigued with what they were doing and what the flower was. The flower itself was tiny, only about 5cm wide fully bloomed and the stem was about 10cm long, though it was very thin and flexible. The best part about it though was that the flower itself was pitch black, the same shade Qrow's bird form if he had to guess and it blended incredibly well with the top half of Ruby's hair as she braided it back in. You could only really see it if you were looking at her dead on and you had to be close enough too. He'd have to ask about it later.

Finishing with her braid, Ruby looked up at Qrow with a sad smile, reaching up around his neck and hugging him close. "Please," Ruby practically begged, her voice soft, "Be as safe as you can. And come back."

Reaching around her waist again, Qrow rested his chin on her head and hugged her tight to his chest. "I promise to be as safe as I possibly can." Qrow responded, knowing that was all he could promise. His job was too dangerous to make a promise like that and he wouldn't make it if he didn't know if he could keep it.

"Good enough." Ruby said, pulling back slightly.

"You still gonna sing?" He asked softly, glancing back at Ozpin and then down to all the students trekking across the academy to their next class. "You don't usually have this much of an audience."

"For you? Anything." Ruby replied, her voice clear and strong. The truth in that statement knocked both older men back. She truly was a different person for Qrow.

Looking down at the young woman in front of him, he smiled and pressed a kiss to her forehead before taking a step back. Glancing back to Ozpin, he sent a silly half salute his way both jumping up and turning into his bird, hovering for a second before taking off straight up.

Choosing not to look back at Ozpin, not knowing how he would react to her way of saying goodbye, Ruby stepped up to the edge of the balcony, closed her eyes and decided to just do it, who cares about everyone else. Opening her mouth, Ruby began singing.

_Wherever you're going,_

_I wanna go._

_Wherever you're heading,_

_Can you let me know._

_I don't mind catching up,_

_I'm on my way._

_Just can't take the thought of you miles away_

Opening her eyes, Ruby looked out to the cliffs at the edge of the academy, seeing the feint outline of his bird form flying away.

_And I know you're going somewhere to make a better life_

_I hope that you find it on the first try_

_And even though it kills me_

_That you have to go_

_I know it'll be sadder_

_If you never hit the road_

Seeing him finally reach the edge of the cliff, Ruby poured her heart out, the feelings of longing and sadness pouring out with the lyrics as she watched his form dive over the edge and finally out of view.

_So farewell_

_Somebody is gonna miss you_

_Farewell_

_Somebody is gonna wish that you were here_

_Farewell_

_Somebody is gonna miss you_

_Farewell_

_Somebody is gonna wish that you were here_

_That somebody is me_

Feeling a single tear make its way down her face, Ruby gently rubbed it away before turning around to face her second love, the man who keeps sending away their first love on dangerous missions. A small sad smile was all she could manage for the man before she started silently crying, her face falling and her shoulders shaking.

Ozpin, breaking out of his amazed stupor, quickly rushed to the crying girl and wrapped her in a tight hug. Seeing her this upset broke his heart but they both knew that Qrow was needed out in the field.

"That was absolutely beautiful, Ruby." Ozpin said as he felt her calming down after only a minute. She really did have quite a tight grasp on her emotions.

"Thank you." She mumbled back, not wanting to pull away from his embrace in that moment but knowing that the longer she stays, the more trouble she's going to get in with Goodwitch. "I've been singing it for him for a couple of years now as a goodbye. He caught me singing it once when he left, and he stuck around to hear it all and it just kind of became a tradition."

"I didn't know you could sing like that. Or that you wrote songs." Ozpin said, petting her hair gently. "There seems to be much that I don't know about you these days."

Ruby flinched a little at the hurt tone but didn't say anything to refute it. She'd known for years now that he would never love her like she wanted so she kept her feelings to herself, which, she guessed meant a lot of how she acts around Qrow.

"I have to ask though, what is with the flower?" He asked after a small pause, lightly brushing along the fine petals with his knuckles.

Pulling back slightly to touch the flower herself, Ruby smiled. "It's called a Far Away Flower. Typically, they're for a spouse of a hunter and are only sold in Atlas. They are designed to bloom only when fed by someone's Aura and will stay that way for almost a year or until said persons Aura runs out. Not too many people like them because they don't always like knowing when a loved one is getting beaten up or if their Aura has shattered but I've always used it as a way of knowing if Qrow was alright."

"What happens when someone's Aura shatters or they run out?" Ozpin asked, curious.

"The more someone is beaten and the lower their Aura goes, the less the flower blooms and it will eventually turn back into the rose bud. If someone's aura shatters, then really it just snaps shut but it doesn't die. I've found that if the person lives, so will the flower, but the closer to death they become, the closer to wilting the flower gets. The Aura they supply is from what a person can see if they call it forth, but your Aura is also the manifestation of your soul, right? So as long as your soul is still alive, so is the flower." Ruby explained, petting the rose gently with a smile. "Qrow brought a couple of Dragon Rose's back from Atlas one time for Yang and I which is how we always know when one of us is hurt, but I requested another one the next time he was in Atlas, so I could have one for him too."

It took a moment for Ozpin to realise the implications of what she had just said an almost horrified look crept onto his face. He knew from reports just how many times Qrow had come out of a fight with a shattered Aura and sometimes even close to death, and if he had been connected to the rose for even half of them, then Ozpin was so incredibly sorry for all the heartbreak and moments when Ruby would wonder if Qrow was going to make it back alive.

Looking up at Ozpins face after not hearing any kind of response, Ruby grimaced slightly at the horrified look on his face. "Yes, I've know each time Qrow has come back from a mission that he almost died on. Its traumatising but it's mine. This is the only way I will ever know if Qrow has truly died on a mission, or if he's just lost and needs someone to go find him."

"You, Ruby Rose, have experienced far too much of the worst part of the world." Was all Ozpin managed to get out before he got better control of his emotions. "Now, you should be getting to class. Would you like me to write you note?"

Ruby nodded in agreement to going back to class but shook her head hard at the note. "No, I have Goodwitch and I think she would hate on me even more if she knew I was up here with you. Again. She doesn't like me very much to start with."

Ozpin nodded his head in agreement, stepping away from the girl and motioning to head back inside. "Well, you best be on your way then. Your already about 10 minutes late."

"Yeah, I should. I'll just go the way I came I think. It's quicker. Thank you, Ozpin. I'll see you later." Ruby rushed out, jumping up to kiss his cheek quickly before running back across the balcony and jumping off, using her Semblance to fly straight for the Combat Class arena.

"What is it with those two and doors. Do they hate them or something?" Ozpin mumbled to himself before heading back to his desk, not looking forward to all the paperwork he needed to do.

* * *

Reforming at the doors of the arena, Ruby straightened out her uniform before walking in to face the class. Making her way to the main floor, Ruby realised she made it just in time for the first match to finish. 'There went trying to sneak in.' Ruby thought as she made her way to the seats.

She was still upset at having to say goodbye to Qrow but the talk with Ozpin helped a little, she was just hoping that nobody would decide today was a good to piss her off.

"Miss Rose, how nice of you to join us. I assume your finally finished with your 'family matters'?" Glynda snarked, as she noticed Ruby walking in.

"Yes, Professor Goodwitch. I'm sorry for coming late to the class, but I am finished with my family matters, so I won't be late to any more classes." Ruby replied, trying to be as polite as possible. She could tell though that it just managed to annoy the lady even more.

"Well, as I explained to the class, we are doing team battles today, but I have heard that you are apparently a prodigy of sorts so how would you like to face a team on your own?"

"I'm not sure what your sources are miss but I'd be happy to try a team fight on my own." Ruby replied, her tone flattening by the second. She was just standing to walk down the stairs again to the arena when Yang tried to stop her.

"Miss, that's not very fair to Ruby, she just got here."

"And if she thinks that she can just turn up to my classes late than she can get what punishment I see fit. Miss Rose's fight shall be with Team CRDL. I'll only give you a minute to gather your weapons and then you shall begin." Goodwitch snapped, turning on her heel to move to the edge of the stage.

Yang turned back to Ruby with glowing red eyes. "If you're really quick, you could get changed and still make it back with time to spare."

"I'll be fine. I'm just going to call my locker over, so I have Crescent Rose. We do have to get used to fighting in something other than our chosen outfits you know?" Ruby replied with a slightly manic grin. This chance to beat up Team CRDL was just too good to pass up. They are the biggest bullies and idiots she had ever seen, and she hated them. She saw them picking on a Faunus yesterday and was going to step in when their team leader quickly dragged them away.

Yang just sighed and slumped down on her chair, grinning up at her sister. "Try not to kill them."

"I'll do my best." Ruby said, before turning away and walking down the stairs, calling her locker over with her scroll.

Wiggling back in her chair, Yang just grinned to herself at the thought of what her sister was going to do to the team of bullies on the stage. Feeling a tap on her shoulder, she looked over to see a slightly concerned Blake and a very concerned Weiss. "Aren't you worried about her? She's going up against a whole team of people far bigger than her." Weiss asked, noticing Yang's grin.

"Nah, I don't know where Goodwitch heard it, but Ruby really is a prodigy. How do you think she got in her two years early?" Yang replied, completely relaxed with what was about to happen.

"There is a difference between getting into a hunting school early and facing four hunters in training at once." Weiss retorted, keeping an eye on Ruby as she grabbed her scythe and moved onto the stage, her uniform looking out of place in the room full of students wearing their battle gear. The buzz for the battle to start went off but no one on the stage moved yet, both parties trying to slap each other verbally first.

"You'll see. Ruby's gonna be fine. She's got a good head on her shoulders and it takes a lot to get her off her game- Oh shit." Yang said, cutting herself off as she saw Ruby verbally sparring with Cardin. That would have been fine if not for Cardin moving to touch the black Rose that Yang knew was braided into her sister's hair.

"What?" Blake asked, noticing the action too.

"They are so dead." Was all Yang could get out before the utter massacre of a battle began.

* * *

Gathering Crescent Rose from her locker was almost comforting, to feel the familiar weight of her baby in her hands. Closing the locker, Ruby made her way up to the stage, so ready to face off against all four idiots.

"Look, it's little miss Rose. So young that she couldn't even tell what time she needed to get to class. Poor baby. Maybe you should just go back to where you came from." Cardin mocked, trying to get on the younger girl's nerves.

Rub just smirked in response, not bothering to reply as she flicked Crescent Rose through all her functions, making sure that she was in working order.

That didn't make Cardin very happy though, so he tried again. "Are you gonna be okay in your uniform? Maybe you should go put on that pitiful little outfit of yours and go home, to your mummy." Cardin mock pouted and laughed when he saw that he hit a sore spot. "What, isn't your mummy there to take of your boo boos? Maybe she left you because she didn't want you anymore."

Realising that Cardin didn't have a clue what he was talking about, Ruby finally decided to respond. "Oh Cardin, shouldn't you be more worried about trying lug that big head of yours around everywhere? It's a wonder your mother ever cared enough to stay, you know. For someone with such a big head, you sure do have a tiny brain." Ruby said, making her eyes purposely bigger, wearing a mask of innocence. She smirked internally at the growl he released, stepping towards her in what was probably an attempt at menacing.

"Watch it little red, or I won't go as easy I was going to on you. We wouldn't want you to be a total embarrassment, would we?"

"I don't know Cardin. You would look good with 'Loser' written right across your forehead. You certainly have enough space for it." Ruby grinned, faintly noticing the buzz that indicated the start of the battle but knew that Cardin would want the last word before he attacked.

As he got closer though, Ruby could tell that he could see the rose in her hair and cursed slightly. "Well, would you look at that. The little girl even has a silly little flower in her hair. How cute." Cardin laughed, his other three team mates laughing with him. Stupidly, he tried to reach for the flower in Ruby's hair.

Dodging back slightly, Ruby swore in a dark tone, "Touch the flower, and I can't promise that you'll have a hand to take back."

Cardin just laughed it off and reached forward again, looking back to his team to try and mock her further. "Look, she doesn't want me to touch it."

Time for Ruby slowed to a crawl as Cardin's hand got closer and closer to her hair, just daring him to touch it. She felt his fingers brush her hair as they formed to try and grip the rose and Ruby saw red, quickly transforming Crescent Rose into her gun form and shot him straight in the stomach, point blank range.

Seeing Cardin fly backwards and slam into Sky, Ruby rushed forward, Crescent Rose rolling out into her scythe form as she raced across the floor of the stage. Using the blunt outer edge of the blade, Ruby shoved Dove back a few steps before turning to her next opponent. Hooking the blade around Russel's waist, Ruby looked straight into his rather terrified eyes as she pulled the trigger and swung the blade, throwing him clear across the room and slamming into the wall, his Aura shattering as he impacted.

Moving back to Dove, who had recovered his balance and was charging on her, Ruby shot herself into the air in a spinning arc, dodging his swing at her and on her downward spiral, slammed the shorter and blunt edge of her blade into his stomach, sending him flying back to the edge of the stage but still in the game.

Landing in a crouch, Ruby only just noticed Sky creeping up on her, his halberd aimed for the shaft of Crescent Rose. Ruby just watched as his blade hooked over the shaft, and instead of trying to fight for it, she let it go, rolling back to where Russel had dropped his daggers. Ruby picked up the handles, not even looking at them as she watched Sky fall to the ground, the unexpected weight of Crescent Rose added with no resistance when he pulled, he was practically trapped under it.

Ruby almost laughed at the idiocy of the move before she saw Cardin out of the corner of her eye taking a swing for her head. She swiftly stepped back out of range and then ran up the short length of his mace which was stuck in the ground, kneeing the boy in his face before jumping off and vaulting over his back, turning to face them with a manic grin.

"I hope you didn't think I'd be defenceless without my weapon, did you? Silly Cardin, this is what I was talking about. Big head, small brain." Ruby mocked, fake pouting at him as she twirled the daggers in her hands, rolling through the dust available. Finding the trigger in the handle, Ruby grinned at the three boys, all getting steady on their feet and glowering at the smaller girl.

Charging for Sky, who had thrown her scythe to the side and had his halberd at the ready, Ruby used her semblance to phase straight through him and his weapon and reformed behind him, slashing at his back with blades coated in burn dust, depleting his Aura in a matter of seconds. Sensing his Aura going into the red zone, Ruby jumped and kicked at his back with both feet and a small push of Aura, sending him flying into the wall and down next to his teammate, his Aura too shattering upon impact.

Flipping over and landing on the balls of her feet, Ruby quickly moved on to Cardin, who just happened to be closest. Taking a running jump at him, Ruby kicked aside the mace he swung at her and wrapped her legs around his chest, stabbing both sides of his neck with the lightning dust, electrocuting him. Feeling his unconscious body starting to fall, Ruby flipped down and used a Aura enforced kick to send him flying into the pile of his team she was building off to the side.

"Last one, little Dove. Are you scared?" Ruby mocked, before she ran at him, swiftly kicking him the chest to sending sliding into the wall behind him before throwing both daggers at his shoulders, pinning there before she reached across and picked up Crescent Rose, shooting him straight in the chest from across the room, the impact causing his Aura to shatter too.

Hearing the buzzer to end the match go off, Ruby straightened from her position and flicked Crescent Rose back into her compact form, holding it down by her side as she walked off the stage, leaving Dove pinned to the wall for someone else to deal with. Making her way to pile of Team CRDL, Ruby crouched over Cardin, slapping him lightly to see if he'd wake before realising he wouldn't. Turning to his team mates, Ruby practically growled at them. "Tell your idiot leader when he wakes up, that if he ever tries to touch me or my friends again, I will find him, and I won't be so easy on him. Got it?"

Seeing both hesitantly nod, Ruby growled at them. "I said, got it?"

"Yes ma'am." They both stuttered out. Pleased that she got her point across, Ruby stood and headed over to the stairs leading to the view area.

"Professor Goodwitch?" Ruby called, stopping about halfway up the stairs.

"Yes, Miss Rose?" Goodwitch replied, the slightest bit afraid of what this girl could do.

"Next time you want to make an example of me, do try to find something I'm bad at." Ruby replied, her tone flat and her face neutral. Not needing a response, Ruby turned and continued her way up the stairs, walking across and sitting herself down in the seat between Yang and Nora, wanting to be close to her sister.

Stunned silence was all that followed for a whole minute before the rest of the class started cheering and asking questions. Who was she? How did she do that? Where did she come from? Did she train with Pyrrha?

Thankfully, Teams RWBY and JNPR didn't get involved in all the question asking and cheering, just lightly congratulating her and allowing her to sit in silence. Everyone was left wondering though, what it was exactly that set her off at the beginning of the fight.

Yang understood though, and pulled her sister into a side hug, wrapping her arm around her shoulder and pulling her in, letting Ruby rest her head on Yang's shoulder while they watched the rest of the matches. Team RWBY wouldn't fight that day because Ruby had just done it for them, so there was no need to worry about getting ready to be called on which was a relief for the Blonde as she carded her fingers gently though her younger sister's hair.

Feeling Yang's fingers in her hair, Ruby sighed and finally relaxed into the embrace, not even caring if anyone else thought that it was weird or a weakness, she was just glad she had her sister there with her. She couldn't have imagined what would have happened if Cardin had actually taken the rose from her hair, not that she would have let him, but what if.

Feeling something nudge at her hand hanging at her side, Ruby looked over to see Nora gently pulling at her fingers. Reaching out, Ruby grabbed at the hand offered to her, tightly clasping it before looking back up to her face.

Nora only smiled lightly, silently asking if she was doing okay. Nora knew what kind of fight that was. That was almost a revenge mission for something the other person didn't know they'd done. Nora had done it before when someone tried to steal something important of Ren's, and with the knowledge that Ruby was the singer of the sad song, she wanted to make sure that her young friend was okay. Feeling Ruby squeeze her hand slightly with a sad and tired smile on her face, Nora decided that she was never, ever going to let this girl be alone ever again.

Shifting her hand slightly, Nora watched as Ruby's smile fell a little before she slowly pulled her hand away. Letting go was not the goal Nora had in mind though and quickly grabbed at her hand again, this time sliding her fingers through Ruby's and holding tight. Looking back to Ruby's face, Nora saw her smile again, this time happier and gave her hand a small squeeze before looking back at the fights, not letting go of her hand for the rest of the lesson.

Yang had looked over when she felt Ruby shift, wanting to make sure that she was alright when she saw what Nora was doing. Smiling to herself, Yang shifted her attention back to the stage, happy to let Nora form whatever kind of friendship with Ruby, knowing that she needed more friends and would get along swimmingly with the other hyper girl. 'We can only hope.' Yang thought to herself, glancing back to see Ruby's soft smile and Nora's kind one, their hands entwined together.

* * *

Weiss and Blake were concerned. Ruby had been distracted the whole morning, left during one class and utterly and mercilessly smashed Team CRDL when she arrived to the next. And then, to make it even weirder, Ruby spent the rest of the day mellow and kind of gloomy, which was not the norm for the younger girl.

Blake wasn't too worried, having seen how Yang was acting and noting that she wasn't shocked, so it must be somewhat normal behaviour, but she did wonder what had set it off. Ruby had been pretty happy and almost bouncy for most of the week and this sudden change in attitude had her curious. Maybe She'd have to ask Yang about it.

Wiess on the other hand was very worried. While she still hadn't thought that Ruby was quite what a leader should be, she knew that whatever episode she just had on the stage was not it. Ruby was far more powerful than she had ever assumed, and she almost felt sorry for saying that she didn't belong in the school but if she was going to through a tantrum about a flower, which was what that fight looked like, than maybe she should be concerned. Weiss hadn't even noticed that she had a flower in her hair this morning anyway, so it couldn't have been that important but maybe she'll have to ask Yang about it later.

Jaune was confused though. He hadn't realised that Ruby was such a powerhouse and, like most of the class, was curious to know where she had trained and how nobody knew of her. He was almost going to ask too, when he felt Pyrrha's hand on his arm, and her head shaking at him, telling him not ask. He was curious but if Pyrrha told him not to, maybe he shouldn't, but then watching her go through the rest of the day with barely a word to anyone was weird, and slightly concerning. He'd have to ask Yang after dinner.

Pyrrha too was worried about her young friend. It wasn't like her to be so harsh on people, nor was it like her to be so mellow and unresponsive. She was definitely going ask Yang about this as she didn't seem to be surprised by the change, just making sure that she was close by in case she was needed and leaving her alone for the most part.

* * *

The last bell for class couldn't have rung soon enough, and with a quick glance to Yang, Ruby walked away to find somewhere to be alone, knowing that Yang was okay with it and would grab her gear for her. It happens almost every time Qrow leaves, Ruby would spend the whole day moping about and then after he left, she would hide away where nobody could see her, doing what ever she felt like doing, usually moping about and staring blankly at nothing.

Gathering the stack of gear Ruby had left for her, Yang walked out into the halls and headed back to the dorms as though the day wasn't any different. Ignoring the odd looks she was getting from Blake, Weiss and Jaune, Yang thought about where Ruby might be headed. She typically went for the places up high but there were so many around the school that if she were to go looking for her, she wouldn't know where to start. And while she knew that Ruby was friends with and she was fairly certain in love with Ozpin, Yang knew she wouldn't go there. Not today.

Still thinking about Ruby, Yang hadn't noticed that she had reached the dorms until she was standing in front of her desk, having put all her gear down and blankly staring at the wall. Hearing someone clear their throat behind her, Yang startled slightly and turned to see her team and only half of Team JNPR all staring at her expectantly.

"Oh, hey guys. What are you doing in our room…?" Yang asked, looking pointedly at Jaune and Pyrrha. "And where are Ren and Nora?"

"Nora said she wanted pancakes and Ren said he'd go with her to make sure she doesn't eat them all." Jaune replied, shuffling slightly and looking to Pyrrha.

"And we are here because we're concerned about Ruby. We may not have known her long, but this seems particularly out of character, especially for her." Weiss said, sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Yeah, I didn't actually think Ruby had a 'mellow' function." Jaune said, moving to lean against the doorframe.

Yang sighed and flopped into her chair, admitting to herself that they do deserve to know, half of them are her teammates and the other her friends. "Look," She started, straightening a bit in her seat. "This is only gonna last a couple of days, max, but considering that we're going to be together for the next four years, I guess you deserve to know. The question is, how to start?"

"Well how about this, what was with the flower Cardin was talking about? I didn't see one there this morning or even in class, what was she getting so worked up about?" Weiss asked, still very much confused about what happened in Combat Class.

"Oh, yeah, that." Yang sighed, before continuing. "Ruby hasn't been wearing it for a couple of weeks but she will be now, and it's called a Far Away Flower. They were developed in Atlas as something for the spouse of a Hunter to keep with them as a way of knowing if their loved one was alive. They're powered by the persons Aura and will only die if the person powering it dies."

"Why would Ruby have one? And how did she even get one of those? They aren't that popular in Atlas and they certainly aren't sold in the other nations." Weiss asked.

"Ruby has two, technically. One for me and one for Qrow."

"One for you?" Blake asked, she'd never noticed something as big as a flower on her before.

"Yeah, we have one for each other." Yang explained, pulling a red and yellow Dragon Rose out from the pocket of her uniform, showing it to the others. "It's a way for us to tell when the other one is getting hurt."

"That's very sweet, but who was that Qrow person you mentioned?" Blake asked, taking quick note of the flower before moving on.

"Qrow-" Yang paused, thinking of a way to explain the situation that wouldn't offend some of the more delicate personalities in the room. "Qrow is a very important… person… in Ruby's life and just today left on a dangerous mission, of which we have no knowledge where he's going and when he'll be back. Ruby takes it really hard when he leaves and makes him recharge her rose before he leaves and wears it constantly in her hair, so she'll know if something ever happens to him while he's out in the field."

The room was silent for minute, each of the teens thinking about what they heard when Pyrrha spoke. "Is that why she left during class today? And why she's been so upset all day?"

"Yeah. He always leaves at the same time, no matter what day he leaves, and Ruby has yet to miss a farewell. She will though, be a bit mopey for a couple of days at most before she returns to her usual self."

"And what happened in Combat Class? She looked like she was fine and then suddenly went berserk." Jaune asked, extremely curious about that particular experience.

"While Ruby hates Cardin and his group of bullies, she wouldn't usually beat them to the point of their Aura shattering, I thought." Blake added, thinking back to the class.

Yang sighed and pursed her lips in annoyance. "He had that coming for him, bully or not. Nobody, and I mean nobody, ever touches Ruby's rose. Usually you can't see it because it's pitch black and she braids it into the top of her hair where it blends in, but he was close enough to not only see it but try and touch it too? Nobody comes away from touching her rose without some form of bodily harm."

"So, what? She's just allowed to go around beating people up if they try and touch a little a flower in her hair? That's pretty childish if you asked me." Weiss said, turning her nose up at the blonde.

"It's not childish, Weiss. It's protective. But I guess you wouldn't know anything about that, being an ice queen and all."

"Don't call me that!"

"Don't call my sister childish! She's not some ignorant child who doesn't know anything, but you sure seem to be acting like one."

"Oh, the nerve!"

"You know what? I think you're jealous. You're jealous of my little sister because she's two years younger than you and yet she's years ahead of you in terms of being a true huntress."

"Why would I be jealous of that child?"

"She's not a child!" Yang screamed, her semblance flaring as her hair grew ablaze. "And stop treating her like one!"

"Alright, alright!" Jaune yelled, moving between the two girls glaring at each other. "I think maybe we should all leave and go do something else before people start fighting and destroying the room."

"I agree. Perhaps we could all go to the cafeteria and enjoy an afternoon snack." Pyrrha suggested, moving to blonde and gripping her wrist, steering her out the door.

"An afternoon snack does sound very appealing." Agreed Blake, also moving out the door. "Maybe we'll run into Ren and Nora and share with them what we heard."

"No, I'm good thanks. I'll just get started on my homework instead." Weiss said, moving towards her desk and ignoring everyone else as they left and closed the door. "Good riddance, I wanted some peace and quiet to myself…"

* * *

Having told the group that she was going off in search of pancakes, Nora made her way back out onto the courtyard, Ren following her along the way. They both had noticed Ruby's change in behaviour and her sudden disappearance and wanted to go make sure that she was okay, and offer whatever comfort they could, if only they could find her.

"She seemed to be facing the cliff edge when she was singing, maybe she went that way." Ren suggested as he watched Nora frown slightly in thought.

"What a great idea Ren! I'm sure we'll find her now!" Nora shouted, bouncing on her way to the landing pads at the cliff edge, eager to find the younger girl.

Following a little further behind, Ren thought about what kind of Ruby they may find. While the girl seemed to be much like Nora in way of attitude, he knew that she also possessed a much deeper level of processing and understanding that Ren only saw during the initiation. But today seemed to be showing another side of her that they hadn't yet seen, and it worried him slightly.

To see Ruby so mellow and down was almost as heartbreaking as it was to see Nora in the same shape. They just seemed to ooze energy normally and to experience them in any way different was odd. And he was a little concerned about the fight against Team CRDL, having seem a fight similar in his journeys with Nora. Clearly, Cardin had done something to set her off on a revenge mission, and Ren wanted to make sure that she was feeling okay, knowing that battles like that were more than just a physical one.

Reaching the landing pads, Ren noted that there was a few Bullheads constantly rotating through and knew that they wouldn't land if there was someone on the pads, which meant she was either further along the edge of jus not there at all.

Looking one way along the edge, Ren heard his partner shout in success from the other direction as she found the person of interest sitting with her legs hanging off the edge just a little further down.

"Ruby!" Nora called with a big smile, wanting to give the girl a little warning before approaching, not wanting to scare her into falling off the edge. Seeing the younger girl slowly turn her head in their direction, both teens frowned in concern as they saw her shoulders shaking as tears poured down her face. "Ruby?"

Hearing her name being called, Ruby turned around to see Nora's smile drop and Ren's frown to deepen as they grew closer. Not wanting them to see her right then, Ruby shuffled back from the edge and rolled over her head and onto her feet, looking back at the shocked pair before taking off into the foliage surrounding the academy grounds.

"Well I certainly didn't expect that." Ren noted, as he caught up to his frozen partner. "You are going after her, yes?"

"Of course, I just didn't think she'd run. But she shouldn't be alone, not right now." Nora said, her face hard as she thought about what could happen to her friend when she was so upset.

"Come on then, if we let her have too much of a head start we'll never find her." Ren expressed, taking off at a hard sprint after their caped friend, Nora following only steps behind.

Racing through the trees, Ruby couldn't help the tears as they poured down her face, cursing her life as a silver eyed warrior and for being so smart and falling in love with the two worst men possible, especially when they were together. Why, why, why?

"Why?!" Ruby screamed at the sky as she tripped over a root, not even bothering to get up. "Why did I have to be the one to go through all this?! Why couldn't I be normal?" She sobbed, curling into a ball on the dirt.

Coming to a sliding stop, Ren and Nora looked on at the girl as she sobbed out questions to the sky, asking why she had to love them, and why they had to be together and why she couldn't have just been a normal girl with normal crushes and worries and a life without her stupid powers.

_Powers?_  Looking over to Nora who just shrugged helplessly, Ren looked back to the slumped girl as she sobbed. Moving slowly towards her, Ren stopped short when she jerked from her position on the ground to reach into her pockets, quickly drawing a pair of handles before she leaped for the closest tree to her, the handles folding out into some kind of blade before tearing into the bark, her arms blurring as they moved.

The jump from miserable to pissed was quick as she leapt from the ground, pulling Rosebud out and pushing all the feelings she had into them as she tore through tree after tree, shifting between the Sai blades and the Dual Blades as she moved forward, tearing through anything that got in her way.

She could never let either Qrow or Ozpin see her like this, practically thowing a tantrum in the forest because she didn't get her way, but Ruby didn't know any other way to get rid of the horrible ache in her chest. Tearing through tree after tree, Ruby raced forwards into the edges of the Emerald as she heard a pack of Beowolves moving in her direction, clearly attracted to her emotional turmoil.

Faintly hearing the sound of a couple of the school lockers landing nearby, Ruby ignored them in favour of slashing through the pack before her, cutting off heads and arms as she went, not caring about how, as long as the Grimm were dead. Finishing the last one off, Ruby stood panting for a few seconds before realising that there were no other Grimm in the area, meaning nothing else for her to kill.

"Screw you Ozpin!" Ruby screamed, once again collapsing to the ground, dropping her weapons as she covered her eyes, feeling her power stirring violently beneath the surface. "No, no, no, no…"

Finally catching up with the younger girl, both older teens were shocked by the sight of what was a large pack of Grimm, fading away into the afternoon breeze, Ruby's shaking form sitting right in the middle. Picking their way carefully over to the girl, Ren and Nora finally understood the comment about 'powers' when they saw what looked like tendrils of silver light escaping from beneath the shaking girl's hands.

Calling her name gently, Ren realised she couldn't hear them as her mumbling got progressively louder, her repetition of 'no' quickly becoming concerning. Seeing Nora creeping closer on the girl, Ren reached out and pulled her back, softly explaining that they don't know what was happening and that maybe it would be safer if they didn't approach her just yet.

"I was dangerous too when you first saw me, that didn't stop you." Nora retorted, jerking her arm out of his grip before hopping her way over to the girl on the girl. "Ruby?"

Looking up at the sound of her name, Ruby was shocked to see Nora rather quickly making her way across the fading bodies towards her. Knowing that her powers were showing around her eyes, Ruby cowered slightly away from the older girl, trying to think of a way to release her powers in a way that wouldn't hurt her friend. The power itself shouldn't hurt anything that isn't a Grimm but if they were close enough to an explosion of the stuff, it would definitely throw them back, and she didn't want to do that.

"No- Nora?" Ruby asked, wanting to make sure she wasn't just imagining things.

"Yeah, it's me. And Ren's here too."

"Ren's here too?" Her voice getting higher as her emotions moved from angry to scared in a split second. Leaning around to see behind the hammer wielding teen, she could indeed see Ren, standing a few paces back with a worried look on his face.

"No, no, no. Nora you have to go. Please." Ruby begged, feeling her powers become more volatile, her hands shaking.

"No Ruby. I won't leave you alone like this." Nora responded, her voice gentle but determined as she crept even closer.

"N-no. I don't mean it like that. I'm dangerous right now, I could hurt you, please, just go. Or even climb a tree or something. Get either away or above, but please don't come closer." Ruby rushed out, trying hard to push the power down to her hands, hoping that what she had in mind would work.

Hearing what she said, Ren sped forwards and grabbed his partner by her arm away to the edge of the field, ignoring her protesting as she was dragged away.

"Ren, we have to help her!" Nora shouted, trying to pull away but his grip was too strong.

"No Nora, she's trying to help us. Just do what she says okay, we're not leaving her behind, were just getting higher up. Ruby knows what she's doing, we need to trust her and follow her instructions." Ren replied, turning to grip her shoulders, trying to make her understand.

Nodding slowly, Nora agreed and jumped up onto the highest branch she could reach, before jumping again, getting as high as safe as she could while still being able to see Ruby.

Seeing Ren follow close behind Nora, Ruby smiled slightly before focussing back on her power, knowing that even if she had calmed down, it still needed to be released. Continuing to push the power to her hands, Ruby watched as twin balls of raw power formed in her hands, both growing by the second, making the space around her brighter and brighter as they grew.

Realising that if she were to try and hold all the power available in her hands, she'd fail, Ruby slowly turned her palms to face the ground, trying to force the balls into the grass, only succeeding in flattening the power into twin plate shapes. Seeing the power build to cover the whole of the field, Ruby could just feel the last tendrils slipping out of her palms and with the last of her energy, she forced the large circles to disburse, sending a large wave of wind blowing in every direction around her as the power went out in search of Grimm to kill before disappearing, sending a chilling breeze over the whole of the campus and deep into the Emerald Forest.

Ruby only had time to glance over and see a thoroughly windswept but mostly okay Ren and Nora leaping out of the tree they were in as she felt her body swiftly falling to the ground, her last conscious thought of both teens, hoping that they wouldn't hate her too much for what they just saw.  _'I'm so sorry.'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! So, a couple of things. 1) I have always wanted to see Nora and Ruby closer because I always believed that they would get along swimmingly. 2) I also wanted something with Ren because really, before Weiss softened out - which won't be for a while in this fic - she didn't have anyone who so openly accepted her without wanting to change her, so I thought Ren would fit perfectly. 3) I have always loved the idea that Ruby could sing and am unashamed to admit that I was deeply inspired by the latest chapter of Emerald Rose written by KryHeart on AO3. The song she sings in this chapter is Farewell by Rihanna. And I know that I'm leaving it on such a cliffhanger, but I really couldn't fit what happens next in just this one chapter.
> 
> So many people are starting to find out though. This is the last of them for now though. I don't have any plans to reveal her powers to anyone else anytime soon but sometimes these things just write themselves so we shall see. Bye for now.


	7. Chapter 5 - Ren and Nora Find Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A chapter of feels and talks and Ren and Nora.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! To all my wonderful readers the people who have Followed and Favorited this story, I am pleased to be present you with the next chapter! It's longer than I thought it would be and I didn't even get to put everything I wanted in it so that stuff will just have to go in the next one, but for today, you can all have this one.
> 
> Starring Ren and Nora!
> 
> Word Count: 12,672
> 
> Enjoy!

"Ruby!" Leaping from the tree, Nora stumbled her way across the field, her entire body still shaking from the blast of wind, but she didn't care. She was more concerned with the way Ruby wasn't moving. Sliding the last little bit to the caped girl, Nora quickly crawled to her side, gripping her shoulders tight and shaking her hard. "Come on, come on, come on, wake up."

"Nora." Ren called when he caught up, gently gripping her arm. When she didn't stop shaking the girl, he tried again. "Nora, you need to let her go."

"No!"

"Nora! Shaking her isn't helping. You need to stop." Ren stated firmly, pulling his partner back into a tight embrace to try and calm her down. Reaching around her with one arm when he felt her settle slightly, Ren felt for a pulse in the younger girl's wrist, noting that it was relatively normal all things considered, before focusing back on his partner. "She's fine. I think she just passed out. We'll just have to wait for her to wake up."

"But what? How? What?"

"I don't know. But we should probably get her back to her dorm. I doubt she's going to wake up anytime soon, that looked like it took a lot out of her." Ren explained, letting go of his partner in favour of scooping up the smaller girl. He frowned slightly when he noticed how light she was but pushed that aside, and stood, carrying the girl back to the main part of the campus.

Nora followed close behind, picking up the two weapons as she went, twisting the Sai blades around to find a way to retract them. She must have done something right when a moment later they snapped closed, scaring the living daylights out of the girl. Nora grinned in success before she jogged to catch up with her partner.

"I still don't understand what's going on. Was she upset about her love life? Maybe it was about what happen with Team CRDL?"

"I don't know, and I don't know what we just saw either, but it didn't seem unfamiliar to her so maybe she could tell us when she wakes up. Whenever that is."

"Yeah… and what are we going to tell the others? We can't just say that we followed her and then she was crying and then she was screaming at then she killed a massive pack of Grimm and then she managed to literally blow us away with a weird silver light. That's just weird."

"We'll think of something."

Ignoring the looks they were getting, Ren and Nora slowly made their way back to the dorms, trying to be careful not to jostle the girl too much, lest she wake up. As much as they both wanted answers, they knew that even without the weird power outburst, today was a long and hard day for the girl and she deserved her rest.

It was a wonder who she was talking about, though. Was she in love with someone? No, that didn't make sense, she said that they were together. So maybe she loves two someone's and they love each other? That sounds more like it fits. But who could it be that she loves? None of them have been here long enough to form even strong friendships, so that means that she knew them before she came to Beacon. But then who? And what other worries did she have that weren't like that of a normal 15-year-old? Besides her early entrance, which, according to what he'd heard, she earned completely on her own, so she wouldn't be stressed about that-

"Ahem." Jarred from his musings, Ren noticed that they had made their way through the dorm and were now standing in front of Team RWBY's door.

Smiling down at Nora in thanks, she just smiled and leant across to knock on the door. Not receiving a response, both teens frowned before Nora tried again. They waited a minute before trying a third time before they gave up. Shrugging to each other, the both turned around and crossed into their own dorms, figuring that they could just tell the other team whenever they return.

Noticing that their team happened to be gone too, Nora shrugged before directing Ren to put the sleeping girl in her bed. Moving forward to remove her shoes before tucking the younger girl in, Nora watched as Ren went about closing the curtains and making the room as dark as possible. Looking to each other, they smiled before quietly moving away from Ruby, leaving her to sleep peacefully as both teens started on their homework, knowing that they couldn't do anything loud and didn't want to leave her alone in case she woke up.

Glancing back to the girl only a few minutes later, checking to see if she was alright, they both caught each other's eye and smiled. They may have to talk about it eventually but they both knew that they would follow Ruby to the ends of Remnant if that's what she asked of them. Somehow, she had managed to pull the pair of them in, and neither of them really wanted to escape her little orbit. Ruby seemed very much like a little sister that they wanted to protect but knew that she would lead them to some of their most interesting moments in life.

' _We'll protect her the same way we've protected each other. With love, attention and by following her direction. Never will we let her be alone again.'_  They both thought, smiling to each other before moving back to their tasks, the silent promise hanging between them.

* * *

The group of five teens moved slowly over the courtyard, on their way back to their dorms. It had already been an hour and a half since they left their dorms and each of them was both worried about Ruby and wondering where Ren and Nora had gone. They said they were going for pancakes, but they weren't in the cafeteria and they weren't in any of the student kitchens, which was really odd.

While they had all only known each other for a week, there were somethings that the others caught onto quickly. One was that if Nora said she wanted pancakes, she was going to get pancakes. And two was that if Nora wanted pancakes, Ren was always with her, either to make sure that she didn't eat all the available ones to just make her a batch of her own.

Approaching their building, they all noticed Weiss just reaching the door, not even giving them a moment of her attention before walking in. "Looks like someone hasn't had enough time to calm down."

"Yep. I hope Ruby doesn't come back to her like this though, she has enough on her plate without adding sour Weiss Cream to it."

Hearing simultaneous groans, Yang grinned and moved onward, opening the door with a flourish and holding it for the others.

"Really Yang? Was that really necessary?" Blake asked as she walked past, giving her partner a side eye before walking off, not really expecting a response but rolled her eyes at the affirmative hum she heard.

The two half teams finally made it their dorms, deciding to turn in for the night as it been a long week and they had eaten enough to cover dinner anyway. Yang was still distracted, worrying about Ruby when she heard a confused noise escape Jaune.

"Ruby?" Jaune was definitely confused. He had noticed when Ruby went missing and after the talk they had with Yang he kind of acknowledged that gloomy would also include wanting to be alone, not in his teammates bed.

"Shhhh." Both Ren and Nora hissed when they heard several other questioning sounds. They had been pretty good for the last hour, but Ruby would shuffle slightly if there was too much noise in the room, and while she wouldn't awaken, she would be very distressed and both teens wanted to avoid that if it was possible.

Jerking back slightly from the shock of being shushed at their own door, Jaune asked again. "What is Ruby doing in our room?"

Ren sighed slightly, realising that they weren't going to be quiet when he heard Ruby shuffling again. Tensing, Ren and all the others watched as Nora gently started to brush her fingers through her hair, carefully avoiding the small rose in her hair, knowing from the past few times she'd tried it that somehow Ruby could tell in her sleep if someone was touching it and would become even more upset.

Finally getting the girl to settle once more, Nora glared at the teens in the doorway before slowly shifting off the bed to push them back out the door, Ren joining them quickly.

"Where did you find her?" Yang softly asked, understanding completely what most likely would have happened. Ruby didn't pass out like that unless she blew up a little which must have been what the chilling breeze that swept through the academy must have been, considering that it wasn't anywhere near winter anymore.

"We saw her by the cliff edge, leaning against a tree and went to make sure that she was okay. She was really upset, about quite a few things if what I could understand was right, and just ended up falling asleep. We brought her back here because nobody was answer Team RWBY's door and we didn't want to wake her up, so we've just put her in Nora's bed for the time being." Ren replied, tone flat, not giving away at all that he might not be telling the truth.

Yang simply gave them a raised brow in response before shrugging and nodding on, agreeing that it was something that Ruby would likely do. Yang was a little worried about trying to move her sister though. It would have been fine, maybe, if she wasn't on the top bunk but she was. And that was only if she didn't try to kick everyone who tried to pick her up in the face. She had a tendency to do that sometimes.

Flinching slightly at the memory of one of the more painful times, Yang sized up the pair of defensive teens standing in front their door. "Have you tried to move her since you put her down?"

"No. We just wanted her to sleep so we left her be. She has been stirring rather easily though." Ren informed the blonde, making her purse her lips in thought.

"I'm gonna try and pick her up and take her back to our dorm but there may be a chance that she won't want to move and kick a fair bit. You may have to put up with her for the night if she doesn't want to move." Yang said, quietly making her way into the room. Being careful not to make too much noise as she crossed the room, Yang gently removed the blanket from her younger sister, having to tug a little at the tight grip she had on it.

Being as careful as she could be, Yang softly slid her arm under Ruby's head first, knowing she'd need her other hand free if she decided today was a kicking kind of day. Slowly lifting her arm, Ruby's head and upper body following, Yang was yet again very thankful for her spare hand, only just blocking the surprisingly fierce kick aimed straight for her head.

Keeping her grip on Ruby's leg, Yang quickly lowered her sister back to the bed, gently returning her leg to the bed before pulling the cover over her again. "Yeah, it's not happening today. Sorry. Once she's found something that she's found safe she doesn't like to leave it. Which is kind of surprising that she finds you safe Nora, but maybe not…"

Yang thought on her options for a few seconds before returning to the pair who had looked after Ruby when she couldn't. "Do you mind if she stays in your bed? Just for the night, I promise."

"Yeah, it's fine. Ren and I have shared a bed plenty of times, Ruby can have mine until she returns it tomorrow." Nora replied, her usual excitement clear but her voice equally as soft as Yang's.

"Awesome, I'll just grab something from our room quickly. I'll be back." Disappearing for a few seconds, Yang returned with a small stuffed crow in her hands, gently tucking it into her sister's hands and watched with a small smile as she curled around it on instinct. "Welp, that should do it. As long as you keep it down, Ruby will surely sleep until well into tomorrow, so she'll be fine. Don't worry if she doesn't wake up until closer to lunch but I will come by and check on her in the morning when I wake up. Night guys."

Walking back out of the room, Yang crossed back over the hall into her own room, moving slowly to lie on her bed, thinking about just what could have happened with Ruby that afternoon.  _'I should have been there…'_  Blankly she acknowledged as Weiss got into bed and Blake went to the bathroom to get ready for the night, lost in her thoughts, she jostled slightly at the light knock on their door.

"Yeah…?" She asked, opening the door to see Nora shuffling her feet slightly in the hall, Her pyjamas on and her hands behind her back.

"Could I talk to you for a minute in the hall?" She asked quietly, which was a bit of a shock for the blonde but not too much of a stretch from what she'd seen just before.

Nodding her head, Yang stepped into the hall and closed the door behind her. "What's up?"

Nora, looking down the hall both ways, slowly pulled her hands out from behind her, holding up the two handles for the blonde to see. "I wanted to give these to you, I figured they'd be safer in your care than they would be with me." Seeing the look Yang was giving her, Nora explained as much as she could, which wasn't much. "I don't really know what happened, one minute she was sitting on the edge of the cliff, the next she was running and tripped and crying and screaming and some other stuff happened, but I don't really get it, and then she passed out. There was some fighting and she did try to cut down a portion of the forest which would be why I have these. I didn't know if anyone else knew though because Ren checked the school records and they aren't there, so I thought maybe you could take them?"

Yang sighed but nodded and took the handles anyway. Ruby was probably going to freak out a little bit when she wakes up without them but it's better than everyone seeing them. Mumbling her thanks, Yang tucked the handles into her pockets and turned back to her door when she had a thought. "You know… This will technically be Ruby's first ever sleep over."

Nora smiled lightly, before bidding the distracted blonde goodnight, watching as she went back to her room and closed the door. Sighing slightly, Nora slumped and made her way into her own room, quietly shuffling over to Ren's bed and flopping down on the small available space left.

It was still early but both teens on the bed were exhausted, not just from trying to chase Ruby through the forest and not get blown away in the wind storm that was her powers, but also the long week they just finished. It was official, they had survived the first week of Beacon and had four more years of it. Nora groaned quietly at the thought before turning her head to look at Ruby, still sleeping peacefully in the older girl's bed.  _'At least we won't be alone.'_

* * *

Staring out his large windows, Ozpin frowned in thought. He had noticed the bright light in the edge of the Emerald Forest just after classes were finished that afternoon and was worried. It wasn't just the light though, because it only lasted a few seconds before it disappeared, it was the slight chill that seemed to sweep the academy and the rather concerning message he had just received from Qrow, who hadn't even been gone for half a day.

" _What's wrong with Ruby? Something happened."_

Ozpin wasn't sure how the other man knew but he honestly didn't have an answer to the question. He had never seen Ruby use her eyes before and wasn't sure if that's what it was. Although it would make the most sense, it just made him even more worried. There wasn't enough Grimm around the school to really quantify using her powers, which would mean that she would have had to be under emotional stress, which was the problem. He heard from Glynda and watched the footage of her fight with Team CRDL and while she didn't technically do anything wrong, it was certainly not common for one student to go up against a whole team and shatter each members Aura like she did.

The sound of his Scroll ringing on his desk distracted his from his thoughts. Moving away from the windows, Ozpin noticed that it was Qrow who was calling, and became confused.

"Qrow?"

"Oz, what happened?"

"I don't understand, what are you talking about?" Moving to sit at his desk, Ozpin perched on the edge of his seat, leaning forwards to rest his elbow in his knees.

"I'm talking about Ruby and the complete lack of Grimm I've encountered the whole day."

"It's not entirely uncommon to find patches of land where there isn't Grimm, Qrow." The sliver haired man sighed, leaning back. He was worried that something bad had already come up on his mission and was concerned.

"That maybe so, but I'm not talking about only small packs of Grimm here and there. I'm talking about none. I have not seen any Grimm for the past couple of hours at all, even though all the tracks I've found point to the fact that I should have. So, I'm asking again, what happened with Ruby?"

"None? At all? That's… not very likely at all." That was strange, and almost unheard of. What kind of creature could scare away so many Grimm like that. Or even kill that many if that was what happened.

"Ozpin." Qrow snapped, he was worried and didn't really want to wait for the other man to get his focus back. "Ruby?"

"I'm not sure. After she left me she went to class, utterly smashed a whole team by herself in combat class but that's about all I know in relation to her. I did see a bright light coming from the edge of Emerald Forest just after classes this afternoon, which I'm assuming was her." The older man informed, a slight tilt to his head as he thought.

"So, it was her, I knew that chill I felt was familiar. Shit." Several similar curses followed the first before Ozpin could interrupt.

"That chill was Ruby? I'm not sure I understand Qrow." Straightening in his seat, Ozpin turned back to the windows, as though just looking out them would let him see the younger girl.

Qrow sighed before he spoke, "Sometimes when Ruby's overly emotional and she can't let the power slowly leak out like it does when she goes on a killing spree, she releases it in one large burst. To do it without alerting everyone with a giant pillar of light in the sky, she'll try and push it in different directions, generally resulting in a slight chill sweeping everywhere as the released power searches out Grimm to destroy. She hasn't yet found a way to do it without sending everything around her flying back in the windstorm she creates, but she's been getting better."

"How far does the power reach? Does it have a distance it stops at or…" trailing off in thought, Ozpin frowned. He'd have to get someone to check out the Emerald Forest if what he was hearing was right.

"It travels as far as it has to until it runs out. Ruby's cleared out Patch a few times by doing it, but we've never measured how far out her power reaches. I'll tell you when I start to encounter Grimm again, considering I've been travelling in a straight line for most of the day."

"That would be very helpful, yes… I don't understand what would have set her off though. She seemed fine when she left my office after you'd left."

"That may be, but Ruby's been through a lot and if she utterly smashed another team in Combat Class, then someone must have pissed her off and then today would have been a very emotionally taxing day. And if she didn't have the chance to just get it all out by hunting down Grimm, then it doesn't exactly surprise me if she blew up a bit."

"I guess I'm going to have a talk with her than. I need her tell me what happened, especially since she was in the Emerald Forest by herself." Ozpin frowned. She could have been seriously hurt if she was emotional and attracting Grimm.

Qrow chuckled at how successful the man might be if he tried so soon. "I'd give her a few days… but that's just me. She might be a bit difficult to find though if your gonna look for her. She's rather an expert and avoiding people she doesn't want to see."

"Why wouldn't she want to see me?" Not that anyone could see him, Ozpin still tilted his head in confusion.  _'I thought she liked me…'_

"She just blew up because she was upset." Qrow explained, knowing the frown that was undoubtedly growing on the other man's face. "Ruby's gonna be embarrassed about it with you, that, and she wants to seem more mature while she's up there. Plus, what are gonna say? You need to see her just because? Or because you think she wiped out all the Grimm with her magic powers? That's gonna go well. Wait until you have a reasonable excuse to actually call her up to your office otherwise it's going to look odd."

"Fair enough." The he conceded before another thought hit him. "That might take a while though… Could you call her?"

"I can but it would have to wait until tomorrow. If she had an outburst of power like I think she did, then she's probably passed out."

"Well I guess that makes sense. I just want to make sure she's okay, I can ask her about it later. Was there anything else you wanted to talk about?" Ozpin asked, quickly typing up a request for Glynda to go for a quick scout through the Emerald Forest tomorrow.

"Not really. Nothings happened so far, besides the lack of Grimm, that I could report and I'm not even close to where I need to be." Qrow shrugged before an idea came to him and he smirked. "You know though…" He all but purred into the Scroll, knowing that the sudden change in tone would grab the distracted man's attention.

"Hmmm?"

"I could really use your help with something… a bit more personal." He continued, his deep voice rolling over the words like the smoothest honey.

"And what would that be?" Ozpin asked, all his attention suddenly on his Scroll and the very attractive voice coming out of it.

"You could…" Qrow paused, waiting for the expectant hum before continuing. "Hang up the Scroll and get back to work, you lazy butt." He drawled, shattering the moment like a window.

"Qrow…" The other man groaned, annoyed at how easily he was caught in that stupidly simple trap. "I'm going to kill you one of these days."

"Maybe." He agreed. "But I should really be going, so bye." He sung before hanging up, laughing slightly before putting his Scroll away before he moved into the Inn door. Now, for a drink.

"I am seriously going to murder him one of these days." Ozpin grained before he put his Scroll down and returned back to the paperwork before him.  _'Sometimes,'_  he thought,  _'I hate my job.'_

* * *

Waking up after an outburst of power was never a gentle thing for the silver eyed teen. It was never a slow awakening of the senses where she had time to roll over and stretch. It was a harsh jerk of the body before she shot up with a gasp and scared the living daylights out of everyone else in the room, evidenced by Jaune's terrified scream.

"Ruby!"

And that was the only warning the younger girl got before she was clobbered by the boisterous blonde.

"Yang?" Ruby gasped out. Her lungs were being squished to an inch of their lives, but she could still recognise that it was not her room they were in. "Where am I?"

"Oh yeah, this is Nora's bed. She and Ren brought you back yesterday after you fell asleep in the forest. I did try to move you, but you tried to kick my head off, so I let you be." Yang explained once she was done suffocating her sister.

"The forest…" At the sharp look Yang sent her and glance she threw at Jaune, Ruby understood. "Oh yeah… that."

Ruby cringed at the flat look her sister through at her and looked at her lap, idly noticing that she was still in her uniform from the day before. Thinking through what happened, Ruby winced at the way she might have hurt her friends before she remembered that she'd dropped RoseBud. Scrambling a bit, Ruby felt her empty thigh holsters and panicked. "Yang-"

"I have them-" Cutting herself off, Yang remembered that Jaune was still in the room, puttering around. Clearing her throat in annoyance, she glared at the boy before he got the message and left, rushing out the door with a slight squeak. Watching as the door closed Yang continued, "Nora picked them up and gave them to me last night. She didn't tell anyone because Ren checked the school records and they weren't registered.

Pulling the handles from her pockets and tossing them over, Yang commented, "You know, for someone who doesn't want anyone to know about them, a fair few people know about them."

"I know," Ruby said, feeling over the handles before she put them back in their holsters. "I didn't think they'd follow me though… Were they okay? Did I hurt them?"

"They looked perfectly fine to me. They were doing homework when we got back and neither looked or moved like they were injured at all. I think they were more worried about you, really. They shushed us whenever we were talking too loud and you'd move." Shrugging with the thought. Looking back over to the bed, Yang sighed slightly at the way Ruby's head was hanging down. "Look, I'm certain that they are both fine and if you just go and explain what happened to them, they'll be happy to see you awake. It's already just passed lunch time."

Ruby nodded, moving the blanket off her legs and swinging out to get up before she was stopped by a heavy hand on her head. "That did not mean you could leave without explaining what happened to me first though."

"Oh, right." Moving to sit back on the edge of the bed, Ruby tried to make sense of what happened the day before. "I was really upset, I guess and sat on the edge of the cliffs. I tried to go further down where people wouldn't be able to see me, but I heard Nora calling my name and panicked a little. I didn't want them to see me like that so ran into the trees and ended up reaching the edge of the forest and tripped and I was screaming a little I think. I could hear the pack of Beowolves coming so killed them and I was on a war path basically but then there weren't any more and I was pissed and then Ren and Nora showed up again and I knew my eyes were already lit up with the wings and I panicked even further and then I tried to release it into the ground but it just flattened and then it was huge and then I released it and then I passed out."

Yang only sighed at the end of the tale, trying to wrap her head around what she heard. "Okay… you said you were crying? Why were you crying? You're not usually that upset after Qrow leaves."

"I think it was a bit of sad and angry crying mixed together. I was upset at Qrow leaving and I also saw him with his partner and I just… I just want that. I want to be loved and cared for and adored in the same way he shows it for his partner. And I can't even hate him for it either, because the person he's with is just as amazing and special and kind and caring and its just so annoying." Ruby all but growled, her anger coming back as she thought over the topic in mind again. "Its annoying and painful and I hate everything because if it, but I just can't hate them. And then there's the fact that I have stupid powers that come out of my eyes. What's with that?! Why couldn't I have been normal? Why did I have to be born with stupid powers and wake up from that stupid dream and unlock all these stupid things and now I have two stupid loves and neither of them will ever acknowledge me as anything but a stupid child and just, ugh!"

"Uncle Qrow is seeing someone?!"

"That's what you got from that?"

"Well, yeah. How long has Uncle Qrow been seeing someone?"

"For ages. Like, I don't even know if they were together before I was born. They don't tell anyone because of who they are and because Qrow's always away only such long missions and stuff…"

"But who? Who could he possibly be with? Is it Goodwitch?"

"What? No! Ewww, that's gross. Why would you think that?"

"Then who is it? Is it Peach?"

"No! Stop asking! If they wanted people to know, they would. I found out by accident and just never told anyone." Ruby said, standing up and walking away, hopefully out of the room and out of the conversation. "I'm going to find Ren and Nora. I'll see you later."

Watching Ruby walk out the door, Yang smiled gently at her younger sisters back, chuckling lightly to herself. "It could only be Ozpin, really."

* * *

Grumbling to herself about Yang, Ruby quickly made her way across the hall and into her own dorm and thanked whatever she could that all of her team had already gone out for the day. Grabbing an outfit quickly, Ruby raced into the bathroom for a quick shower before she went out to look for her friends, fairly certain that she had grass stains all over her.

Stepping out of the dorm building, Ruby smoothed down her outfit for the fifth time that minute, still surprised at how nice the simple outfit felt. She had gone shopping with Coco about a month ago and knowing the younger girls style, Coco took her to one of the more expensive stores that specialised in what the older girl called 'Lolita'.

The simple, no ruffles, high collared and long puffy sleeved blouse was a beautiful soft red and silky smooth to the touch and went surprisingly well with the under breast, black vest with gold buckles. The soft velvet look and feel of the vest constantly surprising the younger girl as she ran her hands over the material. Coco had been having the time of her life picking clothes off the rack for the smaller girl, but Ruby was forced to put her foot down when the older girl pulled out a skirt full of ruffles and bows. Instead, Ruby had spotted a plain black knee length skirt and begrudgingly compromised with a matching red petticoat and a pair of low heeled black ankle boots, a slight strip of wine red velvet along the sides and small bat wings along the top with a matching pair of wine red thigh high stockings.

With her trusty cape pinned to her shoulders, Ruby smoothed out the imaginary crinkles one last time before marching off into the courtyard in search of the odd pair. Making her way into the middle, Ruby slumped slightly when she realised that she didn't actually know where the pair was.

"Ruby!" Turning at the call of her name, Ruby saw all of Team CFVY walking towards her, Velvet waving at her as she walked.

"Looking good there, kid. I knew you'd pull it off great." Coco commented, nodding towards her outfit. Ruby only grumbled slightly at having to wear the heels with it but knew that she may be in a situation where she's wearing heels and will need to fight and knowing how to at the very least walk in them for now, would be best.

"So, what are you doing out here looking so slumpy?" Velvet asked, giving her a side hug as soon as she was close enough.

"I was actually looking for a couple of friends, except I'm not really sure where to start. I kind of blew up at them yesterday and wanted to apologise."

"I saw the black haired and the orange haired one heading for the student kitchens if you wanted to ask them?"

"Really?" Ruby perked up, looking up to Yatsuhashi who had voiced the thought. "The loud and the quiet one? Which kitchen were they headed to?"

Yatsuhashi just pointed back in the direction of her dorm building. "They came from the cafeteria, but I saw them going back to the first-year dorms. I think one of them said that she wanted pancakes."

Turning to look back at the building, Ruby nodded, leaning and jumping up to give each of them a kiss on their cheeks before she dashed off back to her dorm building in hopes of finding her friends in the large kitchen, sending back a quick thank you as she ran.

Coco grinned as she watched the younger girl run off, admiring how well she's gotten used to running in the heels before walking off, the rest of her team following. They didn't really have anything to do that day, so they were just going to head down to the city for a bit, although now that she's seen how well Ruby pulled off the outfits she found for her, Coco may just have to go and buy some more. "Hmmm."

Poking her head around the corner of the main kitchen, Ruby breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that both teens were there, Ren standing at the stove flipping pancakes while Nora babbled at the island in the middle. Walking into the room slowly, Ruby cringed at the way both teens heads snapped in her direction at the sound of her heels on the tiles. "Ummm, hi?"

"Ruby!" And once again, the young teen was tackled in a ferocious hug, Ruby only just able to brace herself before they both fell to the floor.

"Nora?"

"We were so worried about you!" Nora shouted, pulling back slightly to give the girl a once over, checking that she was still fine before squishing her back against her chest. "Don't you ever do that to us again."

Ruby slumped at those words, she knew that they'd be upset with her. "I'm really sorry guys, I didn't mean to blow up like that and I didn't mean to hurt or scare you. I can usually handle it differently and I promise I won't ever do that around you guys again, I swear."

"What?" Pulling back again, Nora looked down to see the younger girl slumping down into herself, her head bowed. "Oooooh, you thought I was talking about the weird light." The older teen nodded before reaching up to pat at the hooded girls head lightly. "No silly, I was talking about how you suddenly passed out in the forest. The weird light thing was odd but kind of cool."

"What? But I thought… You shouldn't be… you think it's cool?" Was all Ruby could really get out, confused at what the older girl was saying. "Why would you think it was cool? I could have blown you away. If we were by the cliffs, I could have pushed you right off!"

"Well, yeah." Nora agreed, ruffling the hair beneath her hand. "But we weren't, and you didn't, and we didn't fall out of the tree, so all is well." She claimed with a smile.

"But- but you…"

"What matters now is that we are all safe, and you are awake." Ren said, noticing the fish like face the younger girl was sporting. "Would you like some pancakes?"

"Ummm… yes?" Ruby answered, hesitantly moving towards the island, not sure what to make of the situation. Sure, nobody who had learned about her powers had reacted too bad, but that didn't mean that no one would, and Ruby was always waiting for the person who would scream and run in terror.

"Come on." Nora said, already sitting at the island again, not so patiently waiting for her pancakes. "I'll even share mine."

Ruby smiled slightly at the offer, moving a bit more confidently towards the chairs before she caught the shocked look Ren sent her way. "What?"

"Nothing much." Ren dismissed with a slight shake of his head. "Nora just doesn't usually share her pancakes, is all."

"Oh, well, if you don't have enough I can just go grab something else…"

"Don't be silly. I can spare a couple of silly pancakes. Plus, I don't think you've eaten since the plain sandwich you had at lunch yesterday and it's already past lunch today, I think you need them more than me."

"You sure…? I don't want to be taking your food…" Ruby asked, looking down at the counter before her.

"It's fine. I always make extras in case she decides she could eat a dragon worth of them." Ren explained, spinning away from the stove with two plates of pancakes, one stack significantly higher than the other one and placing the smaller stack in front of the hooded girl with a quick wink, finally getting a small giggle out of her. Ren smiled to himself as he turned back to the stove to cook another load of the fluffy food, knowing that it only took a couple of minutes at most for Nora to demolish the giant stack he had set in front of her.

Ruby chuckled slightly at the mental image of a giant Nora snacking on a dinosaur sized pancake before she dug into her own plate, just the smell of the food making her stomach grumble with the sudden reminder that she really hadn't eaten in just over 24 hrs.

The kitchen was quiet for a couple of minutes while the two girls ate, Ren fluidly working at the stove when Nora broke the quiet. "So, what was that light? And what was with the wind? I thought your Semblance was speed or something."

Ruby's head shot up at the questions before she lowered it in thought. She knew they deserved an explanation, but she wasn't sure how they were going to take it. "Well, to start with, my Semblance isn't speed, it's turning into petals, I can just use one to make the other and I'd prefer it if we could talk about the other thing in a more private area if you guys don't mind. I don't actually want anyone to know about it…"

"That's cool. I don't really know anywhere that is private besides our dorms though. Would they work?" Nora asked, shoving her last pancake in her mouth, only to be greeted with the sight of Ren carrying another stack over.

"Not really. If either of our teammates are in, then we can't use them, and I don't want them to even know that I'm trying to tell you guys stuff." Ruby sighed, leaning back in her chair as she thought over places that would be safe for her to talk about her power.

Ren and Nora shared a surprised look before they both shrugged and moved back to what they were doing. If it was that much of a secret, they could respect that, but they still didn't know where in the academy they could talk, they had only been there for one week.

Moving back to the stove, Ren started cleaning up, having cooked all the pancake batter and was getting started on his dishes when he heard an annoyed groan and what sounded like a head hitting the table. Looking back, Ren could only watch as Ruby repeatedly thumped her head on the counter top, groaning and mumbling about someone stupid or something. Glancing at Nora with a quirked eyebrow, he only got a confused shrug in response before she slowly reached over to poke the girl in the shoulder.

"I really don't think you should keep doing that… Your gonna start hurting your head." Nora said, a worried frown painted on her face. She couldn't quite hear what the girl was saying but she knew by the tone that she was not happy.

"It's fine. I have enough Aura to not even leave a bump." Ruby sighed as she slumped back in her chair. "I do know a place that we could go to talk, but I don't really want to go their because that would mean that I'd have to talk to the stupid man and I don't want to do that. Yet. I mean, I know I'll have to at some point but still. I practically just threw a tantrum in the forest and I just don't want to see him. Ugh."

"Is there anywhere else, that would guarantee privacy though? To the extent that you want?" Ren asked, finishing quickly with his dishes and reaching over to swipe both plates and cutlery from the bench, quickly turning to back to wash them before putting them in the drying rack and emptying the sink.

"Not really, no." Ruby sighed, sliding down the stool. "And he already knows about all this, so it would really matter if he was there or not, I just don't want to see him."

"And who is this mysterious 'him'?" Nora asked, leaning over her chair, pushing her face right into Ruby's. "Is it one of the guys you were yelling about yesterday?"

At Ruby's shocked blush, Nora pumped a fist in victory before jumping off her chair to stand next to the shorter girl. "So, who is it? Is it someone in our year? Wait, that wouldn't make sense, you don't know anyone from our year. Is I someone from the years above us? No, that wouldn't make sense either. Is it a teacher? That doesn't make any sense either. Are we even staying on the academy grounds? That makes more sense, we're going into the city."

"Nora, you have to let her answer if you want a response." Ren chided as he moved around the counter to stand next to his partner. "Though I am curious too."

"This is going to make things so awkward, but I really can't think of any other option right now…" Sighed Ruby as she too stood, pushing her chair in before she turned to the curious pair beside her. "We will be going to the Headmasters office to talk."

Not bothering to see their reactions, Ruby turned on her heel and quickly walked away, straight out of the dorm building and towards Ozpins office in the tower.

The older teens could watch as Ruby walked out the door, both shocked at the recent discovery they had made about the younger girl. "So, Ruby knows the Headmaster so well that she can use his office for person talks whenever she likes." Ren tried to rationalise.

"Are you kidding me?! That is not what that means. That means that one of the two guys she was freaking out about yesterday is the Headmaster. She doesn't just know him well, she loves him." Nora corrected, jumping in front of her still shocked partner. Not hearing the sound of Ruby's boots on the floor anymore, Nora looked around quickly. "And she's already gone. We have to go."

Ruby didn't pay any mind to the other people around her, ignoring any looks she was getting in favour of walking as quickly as she could to the tower. Hearing Nora shouting for her to wait up, Ruby paused slightly and looked back to see the orange haired girl dragging a stumbling Ren behind her as she ran through the courtyard. She watched as the pair finally reached her, Nora bouncing happily on her toes while Ren tried to straighten out his clothes. "You okay?"

"Fine. She does that a lot."

"I can't believe that you know the Headmaster." Nora half whispered. "Is that a secret, too?"

"Yes, I know him. Yes, it's a secret. No, you can't tell anyone else." Ruby replied, sending a half glare at the partnered pair. The glare didn't hold long in the face of Nora's grin and Ren's steady nod, instead she nodded and continued on walking as a thought came to her. "I should probably call ahead though, just to make sure Goodwitch isn't there or something…"

Ignoring the obvious looks Nora was sending her, Ruby pulled out her Scroll and speed dialled his number mumbling to herself the whole way. "I don't want to do this, I don't want to do this, I don't want to do this…"

"Ruby?" Ozpins surprised voice asked, having spoken to Qrow, he wasn't expecting to see her at all for a few days, let alone calling.

"Hi… Can I borrow your office for an hour? I need the privacy and couldn't think of anywhere better." Ruby sighed, looking skyward which was a mistake because it just pointed her gaze straight onto Ozpins windows.

"Of course. Nobody's up here and nobody should be for a while." He responded, looking down into the courtyard, not really expecting to see her down bellow and was surprised to see her and two others walking towards the base of the tower. "Did you want me to stay or leave?"

Ruby thought for a moment, debating if she really wanted to try and deal with him but decided that if she was going to be using his office, she should probably talk to him. "You can stay." She finally sighed.

"Okay. I'll see you soon."

"Yeah." She said, moving to hang up before she stopped. "Hey Oz?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you." And with that she hung up, pocketing her Scroll and again ignoring the way Nora was mouthing 'Oz' to her partner.

Walking into the tower, Ruby happily greeted Delilah at her desk before walking around the side of the elevators to the staircase door. Not hearing their steps behind her anymore, Ruby looked back to see them standing in the middle of the foyer giving her a weird look, Nora pointing towards the elevators. Ruby just shook her head and crooked her finger at them, nodding her head to the doorway in front of her before walking through it beginning the climb up.

Looking up to her partner with a confused look only for Ren to shrug, Nora did the same as she walked over to the door and through it, surprised to see a staircase. "Woah." Her voice echoed up, bouncing off the walls in the limited space available.

Hearing Nora's whispered awe, Ruby stuck her head out over the railing from 10 floors above them, quirking an eyebrow at them. "Hurry up, we have to get to the top to get to Ozpins office and if your just gonna stand there and gawk, we'll never get there."

Hearing them finally start their way up the stairs, Ruby listened as Nora asked about the stairs, Ren explaining that they were most likely emergency stairs and connected to each floor before wondering how nobody else knew about them.

Ruby just smiled before using her Semblance and floating up to the top, reforming in front of the door, listening out for the other two who were still many floors below her. Taking a deep breath and flattening out the non-existent wrinkles in her skirt before knocking gently on the door in front of her and opening it gently.

Hearing the knock on his door, Ozpin was shocked. Never had Ruby knocked on any of his doors since the first year she started visiting, she had always known that she was perfectly welcome in his office.

"Ruby?" He called as she slowly walked into the space. It wasn't meant to be a question but at the way she was looking to the floor and the way she was nervously wringing her hands, he was a little bit worried. She hadn't been this anxious around him in ages.

"Hey Ozpin." Ruby whispered, not quite sure how to go about talking to him. "I, ummm, I brought Ren and Nora with me. I needed to talk to them and this was the only place I could think of that would be safe…"

Standing up, Ozpin made his way around his desk to stand just before the shuffling girl with a gentle, almost sad smile. "It's fine Ruby, your always welcome up here, you know that. This about what happened yesterday, isn't it?"

Ruby winced and ducked her head down, nodding but not wanting to look at him. Hearing him sigh, Ruby cringed and started fidgeting with the ends of her cape, not really sure what to say. She had expected him to move back, maybe even go back to his desk when she heard his feet shuffling but when his black shoes suddenly came into her line of sight on the floor before her, she snapped her head to look up the silver haired man, who just swept forwards to pull her in a tight hug.

Feeling Ruby start to shake slightly in his arms, Ozpin ducked his head to rest his cheek on her head, breathing in the subtle scent of roses. "I talked with Qrow last night." He started and had to tighten his arms slightly when she made a move to step away. "He called me, worried about what happened with you. He explained what most likely happened and said that you'd try to avoid me for a few days, at least so what ever you need to talk about must be extremely important. The only thing I'm worried about is you. Are you okay?"

Slumping into his arms after trying for a couple of seconds to get away, Ruby just nodded, rubbing her forehead against his chest. "Mm' fine" She mumbled, not really bothered to elaborate. She felt him nod in response before he released her, nodding to the door that was about to open.

"I do believe your friends are here now."

Ruby just nodded in agreement and watched as Nora jumped into the room, the door banging against the wall as she slammed it and Ren walking in calmly after her, gently closing the door behind him.

"Hello Professor Ozpin, thank you for letting us use your office.

"Miss Valkyrie, Mister Ren, a pleasure to see you both." Ozpin greeted, stepping back to his chair. "Feel free to use the sitting area, I'll just be here if you need anything."

Ruby flicked him a quick smile as she lead both teens over to the sofas, Nora sending her quirked eyebrows as she looked back and forth between the silver eyed girl and the silver haired man. "Nora, cut it out."

"Aww dang it." Nora pouted, flopping down onto the two-seater, moving over slightly to let Ren sit next to her. "So, I have a looooooot of questions."

"I'm sure you do."

"And I want answers to all of them."

"I'll try my best."

"Cool. So, what was the light? Why were you crying? What are those weapons? Where did you get them from? Are you magic? Can you fly? What does your weird light thing do? Can you kill people? Can I kill people? Wait, not important. How did you get up hear so fast? How do you know the Headmaster? Are you friends? Is he what you were crying about? Can I break his legs?..." And on she rambled, losing Ruby somewhere not long after that.

Cutting the older girl off, Ruby moved to answer as best she could the many questions asked. And so, set the mood for the next hour, all three teens sitting in Ozpins office as Ruby tried to explain as best she could what her powers were, and that so far, they hadn't hurt anyone so far unless they fell over in the wind surrounding her. Some of the questions she didn't know how to answer, like if she was magic. She assumed so but really that was just a speculation based off the fact that it wasn't related at all to her Aura or her Semblance. And then there were questions that she didn't want to answer, like the ones about Ozpin and if he was what she was crying over.

Ruby purposely avoided looking over in his direction for the whole of their conversation, skipping entirely over the questions about her crying in the forest, until Nora repeated a question she hadn't covered. "So, can you kill people with your weird eye power thing?"

Ruby had to think over it for a few seconds, looking back at all the situations where there wee people involved in the same area that she had used her power. Besides what she said earlier about the wind, nobody had ever been even hurt by her power, so she assumed not, but Ruby knew what would happen when she assumed something.

Begrudgingly looking over to the silver haired man, Ruby called out to him slightly, knowing full well that he had been listening to the whole conversation anyway. "I think you'd know more than I would about this…"

"That is true." He agreed, standing from his desk and moving towards the teens slowly. The information Ruby was asking for was rather sensitive and he wasn't sure that he really wanted to be giving it out to the two older teens.

Sitting himself down on an armchair across from them all, Ozpin spoke. "As far as anyone knows, the Silver Eyed Warriors have only ever been able to physically harm four people with their power."

"Why do I sense capitals?" Nora whispered as she leant over to her partner.

Ozpin just smiled and shrugged as he watched but straightened again when the bubbly orange haired girl turned towards him with a rather serious face.

"I think my most important question though is, are these four-people dead or are they too reincarnated or something?"

"Why do ask?" Ozpin inquired. It wasn't usual for anyone to think that maybe there were people who were reincarnated.

"I want to know because if there is only four people in the world she can hurt, then there is four people in the world who could be coming to make sure she can't, and I need to know if they will be, to be able to protect her." Nora responded, not an ounce of humour anywhere on her face. She was dead serious, and she wanted an answer.

Looking from Nora to Ren, Ruby noticed that they both shared the same look; one that said that not even a dragon Grimm could stop them from trying to protect her, let alone one little Headmaster. "You guys…."

"Yes-"

"No." She firmly stated, cutting Ozpin off but not caring. "No. I don't care if they are or aren't alive, you two are not getting involved. I can not let you two get yourselves into a mess like this."

"But Ruby-"

"No, Nora. This isn't a game, or even just a small little thing that you can just join if you want. This is huge, and I won't allow anyone, especially not friends to be put in this kind of danger." Ruby said, her voice monotone as she spoke, knowing that getting angry would do nobody any good.

"We're your friends?" Nora asked, a small gentle smile stretching across her lips as she shuffled forwards in her seat, trying to get closer to the girl.

Ruby was shocked by the question, it was random but looking into the older girls smiling face, Ruby could only offer a sad smile in return. "Yes, you both are. Or at least, I'd like you to be, but I just can't let you do this to yourselves. People have died, guys. Genuine people that I care about have died and are going to die because of my stupid eyes and the further away from me you are, the better."

Nora watched as Ruby's head bowed, her hair falling down to cover her face and her shoulders shaking slightly. Glancing over to Ren, she quirked a smile before she hopped up and around the coffee table sitting between them, flopping down right next to Ruby. Reaching around, Nora gently grasped the shaking shoulders and pulled her into a side hug, Nora pulling her as close as she could. "Ruby, you may want to protect us, but we want to protect you. And that means we can't let you go on alone. We've done that before, and sometimes the best people to help are your friends."

"No, if I let anyone else in then your just going to get hurt, and I couldn't stand it if you got hurt." Ruby said, chocking slightly on the small gasps of air she was getting, her throat tightening as she tried to hold back tears.

"Ruby." Nora cooed gently, slowly starting to rock the girl in her arms as she felt arms wrap around her waist in almost death like grip. The younger girl was shaking and shuddering, but her grip was strong, clearly trying to make sure the older girl wouldn't leave. "People get hurt all the time, and sometimes people get hurt badly, but I would rather get hurt knowing what was happening and protecting you than anything else."

"She's right. Nora and I have been alone for most our lives, Ruby, we've only ever had each other. Let us have you too and we can promise that we will fight by your side, always." Ren said as he too moved and sat on Ruby's other side, reaching over to wrap an arm around both girls' shoulders. Idly, he noticed when the Headmaster quietly stood and left through the same door that they'd come in but ignored it in favour of Ruby and Nora.

Ruby started to shake her head when she felt Nora gently kissing her hair, a sign of affection that she hadn't felt in long time that wasn't from Qrow. Slumping in the older girls arms, Ruby thought about what they were saying. She could continue to deny them, pushing them away and only having a somewhat awkward relationship with them as she had denied them the kind of friendship that she so deeply craved, or she could let them in. She could let them be the friends that she could go to whenever she needed someone to understand, that wasn't her sister.

"What would you do if I kept on saying no?" Ruby asked, her voice muffled in Nora's shoulder but clearly curious.

"I would keep following you anyway. We've already decided that we'll follow you wherever you go, Ruby." Nora responded with slight cheer, Ren just humming his agreement.

"So, it doesn't matter if I decide to try and run off on my own, you'll always come with me?"

"Always." Ren promised, his voice kind and gentle as he shared a smile with Nora.

"But what about when we graduate? You have Team JNPR, you can't just leave them." Ruby tried to argue.

"Not all teams stay together after they graduate." Ren said, giving the snuggled girl a pointed look. "And I do believe that's what you were going to do anyway though, wasn't it? Leave your team once you graduate so that you can go off and not endanger anyone?"

Ruby cringed slightly when she realised the truth in that statement. "Yeah…" She sighed. "Fine, you can follow me to the ends of the earth and possibly your early deaths."

"Considering our choice in profession, I think any death we have will be early." Ren said, a small grin quirking at his lips as he listened to Ruby's dry tone.

Ruby huffed a small laugh at that, pulling back slightly from Nora to give the black-haired teen a dry look, to which he just chuckled. "Okay, I guess. I don't really understand why you would want to follow me and my dangerous adventures, but you are free to do so."

"Why thank you oh kind one. We are forever in your debt." Nora mockingly bowed and grinned when she got a laugh from the younger girl. It was nice to see her smile again, that hadn't really happened for a few days and it was odd, but Nora did need to clarify something for the younger girl. "Look Ruby, at some point yesterday Ren and I agreed that you don't deserve to be alone. Ever. And we plan to be the people that make sure you aren't."

"The never ending 'Little Sister' role, huh?" Ruby sighed.

"No." Ren argued, causing Ruby to turn towards him with a raised brow. "As a leader. We know somehow that you can and will lead many people on many adventures if you let them, and we want to be there every step of the way. Not to make sure that you are safe and protected and held back from all the possibilities you could explore, but to have your back on each mission you choose."

Ruby looked back to her lap in thought, mindlessly pulling at the edge of her cape again. "I've never thought of anything like that… I always thought that once I graduated from Beacon I would go off and hunt down who ever it is that is threatening my family and the innocent people of Remnant. I never thought that there would be anybody beside me on my journey." Looking back up and smiling at each of them on either side, Ruby leaned over and gave them both a hug each. "Thank you."

Ren and Nora smiled at each other again, pleased to have finally gotten through to the girl and were going to respond when the sound of a Scroll ringing cut through the air.

"Bah! That's probably Qrow! Crap, crap, crap." Ruby jumped from the sofa, quickly digging out her Scroll and holding in front of her, a slightly apprehensive look on her face. Ruby let it ring a couple of times before calming slightly. Taking a deep breath, Ruby finally answered, her response making all three teens cringe as they heard the obviously fake cheery tone she put on. "Hey Qrow!"

"Ruby." And just like that, the flat tone and the entirely unimpressed way he said her name and she was flopping back into one of the other sofas with a huff.

"Yeah, okay…"

"I'd say I heard what happened, but I didn't, I had to tell Ozpin what happened." Ruby cringed at that. He was away for not even one night and she already had a slight melt down. "I did though, feel it, which is impressive considering how far out I am, so I'm only gonna ask this; are you okay?"

"Yeah," Ruby sighed, the tiniest of smiles growing on her face when she heard his voice. She loved his voice, a lot. "I'm fine. There was a couple of friends who were with me at the time and carried me back to the dorm. I only woke up about two hours ago and I've been trying to explain what happened to them and for some odd reason they've decided to join me on my quest of loneliness."

"Quest of Loneliness?"

"Why do I hear capitals?"

"Because I put them there. Now the Quest of Loneliness?"

"It's what I've been calling the time after I graduate Beacon in my head." Ruby shrugged, not even bothering to react to the groan she heard from the other end. Looking over at the pair on the sofa, Ruby mimed that she'd take the call outside and stood, listening to Qrow on the other end try and explain that she wouldn't be alone.

"Not anymore." She agreed with a small smile, looking back to the sofa one last time before she closed the glass door to the balcony behind her.

Looking to each other, Ren and Nora shrugged to each other before Nora flopped back into the surprisingly soft cushions. The sofa was really comfortable for a man who looked like he only used the desk chair.

Ren took to watching Ruby through the glass as she paced around on the balcony, talking to the mysterious Qrow. He was mentioned slightly in the previous conversation they had, he had helped train her with the secret weapons and taught her how to use her Scythe but neither teen thought that the man would be as important as he appeared to be.

Ruby had been down and frowning since the moment they saw her in the kitchen, and only in the past couple of minutes had she started to smile, but not even ten words from this man and she was giggling and smiling and happy. There was an undercurrent of sadness there though, that both teens had seen when he seemed to mention the Headmaster.

Looking back to Nora, Ren noticed that she too was watching Ruby through the glass with an almost manic grin stretching across her face. "I would bet my left leg that it was both the Headmaster and this 'Crow' person are the one's she was yelling about yesterday."

Ren hummed slightly in agreement, it certainly seemed that way. "Your whole leg?"

"From the thigh down." Nora agreed, still watching as Ruby spin in a little circle with a smile on her face, the skirt flaring out around her. "I still need something to attach a prosthetic to if I'm wrong. Not that I think I am. Because I'm totally not. I can totally see it too. Ruby seems to know the Headmaster quite well and he is a rather attractive man, I guess."

"I agree that this 'Crow' person is one of them and maybe the Headmaster too, but I don't think I'd like to bet my leg on it. I quite like mine where they are." Ren responded, sending a quick quirk of the lips in Nora's direction before he went back to watching the balcony. Ruby was an entirely different person out there talking to this person, and he was hoping that she came back inside the same.

"Yeah, fair enough, you are the careful one." Nora agreed, before a thought hit her and she frowned. "You know what this means though?"

"What?"

"If I'm right – which I totally am – than the Headmaster totally made her cry yesterday." Nora said, her frown deepening as she saw Ren look at her with an identical frown.

He hmmm'd in agreement, not at all happy with the thought of Ruby being hurt by the men she appeared to love. He did not approve, she was fifteen and already had her heart broken. That was probably that sad undertone they were hearing before.

Both teens sat there for a few minutes, thinking of all the implications that statement meant. How long had she been in love with these men? Did she actually love them? Looking back out to the balcony and seeing Ruby leaning back against the railing a sweet smile painted along her lips, both teens mentally nodded. It was love.

Hearing Ruby opening the door again, what must have been about five minutes later, both teens watched as she said her final goodbyes, a small, quiet 'I love you' only just floating over to the teens.

Watching as the younger girl sighed and slumped back against the closed door, her eyes fluttering shut as a sad smile stretched across her lips, Nora grinned and jumped up, leaping over the coffee table to stand on the opposing sofa. "Ha! I knew it!"

Jostling from her lovely daydream about spending forever with her beloved Qrow, Ruby jerked back in fright, hitting her head against the door behind her. "Ow… Nora. What was that for?"

"You're in lo~ve." Her grin was terrifying, and Ruby was rightfully afraid of going back to that side of the room.

"I- I'm… no it's not…"

"Yeah you are, and I want to know all about it." Nora said, a bit gentler as she slowly coaxed the girl back to the sofas. "So, I've heard about this 'Crow' person, and you just got off a call with him with a love-sick face on, so I want to know everything."

"I can  _hear_  the 'c'." Ruby said, sitting down gently back in her spot between the two older teens. At the odd look from Nora she elaborated. "Qrow is spelt with a 'q' not a 'c'. And yes, I love him, and no, he doesn't love me. He never will, not in the way I want…"

"Well, you never know these days, he might." Nora tried, mostly to see if her theory was correct.

"No, he won't. To start with, he's technically my honorary uncle. He's Yang's uncle by blood but everyone thinks he's mine too by default. He'll never see me the way I want him to, I'm just his kid niece who never stopped following him around." Ruby sighed. It was a sad but honest truth that she had come to years ago.

She was young, yes, but she wasn't stupid, and she knew that Qrow had so many more years of experience in everything on her. He was an experienced Hunter who had seen the worst of the worst of the world and still decides to go back out, and, to Ruby's utter disappointment and embarrassment sometimes, she would never be able to satisfy him or fill his needs.

Ruby knew that Qrow had a type when it come to the women he liked to bed, and Ruby was not it. He liked girls who were flirty and pretty and usually a bit closer to his age and knew that one night was all he could offer. They fawned over him and his manliness and loved the fact that he was a brave and stupidly good looking rugged Hunter. That, and he liked them tall, which Ruby was definitely not.

Ruby was a short and socially awkward 15-year-old. She was blessed with good skin but didn't care for make up or making herself look pretty, although she was very partial to skirts and sometimes liked to look cute. She also understood what being a Hunter was like for him and didn't like to make a big deal out of all his missions, not anymore at least. She saw his nightmares and the glazed over look in his eye whenever he came back from a bad mission. Ruby respected his dedication and trained harder than anyone else to be the best she could possibly be. She wasn't ever going to be the kind of girl Qrow liked, and as depressing the thought was, she at least knew that he still had Ozpin, the only man in his life that could ever measure up to something they could both call a life partner.

"And the second?" Nora wondered softly, still trying to get to her point but realising that maybe it would actually hurt the girl to try and say it out loud. Ruby had just spent the last minute lost deep in thought and was a little worried when a wry, almost self-depreciating smile grew on her lips before a softer one replaced it.

"He's got someone already and doesn't need me butting in." Ruby responded her self-depreciating smile back along with a matching tone. "You know this already though, don't you? Considering I'm fairly certain you were close enough to hear me yelling yesterday."

"Yeah, we were. I just wanted to double check." Nora admitted, not even bothering to be the slightest bit bashful. "I do have to ask though, from what we heard yesterday, there was two people you loved, and they were both together…"

"That didn't sound like a question, Nora. And by your tone, I'm guessing you already know the answer your looking for, don't you?" Ruby responded, leaning back into the cushions but still looking at the orange haired girl from the corner of her eye. At Nora's nod and expectant look Ruby sighed. "You want me to say it out loud. As though that could make it different somehow… I am in love with Ozpin, the Headmaster of this academy and one of my first friends ever. And yes, just to clarify, I am in love with Qrow, my first and greatest love and yes, they are both together and terribly in love with each other. And no, I will never do anything that could ever possibly get between their relationship, they deserve each other so much and I'm just glad that they have each other. I could never risk them or their happiness."

"Even at the cost of your own?" Ren asked, noting the strong sense of conviction he could hear in her voice. It was admirable to be so selfless, but he was worried about her. Her heart must be utterly broken.

"Especially at the cost of my own." Ruby replied, leaning back to stare at the clockwork above them. "You know, for so long I've thought that I would always be alone. Once I was done with school, I would go off and people would stop having to worry about me. Qrow could finally be with Ozpin, Ozpin could finally be with Qrow. Yang could go off and be the thrill seeker she's always been, and dad could go back to doing what ever he wanted to do. My happiness was never something to be considered when I planned it all out. I needed to finish my mission and the only way I thought I could do that was by going it alone and letting everybody be happy doing what they want, finally not having to be around to look after me."

Looking back to the two teens and their very worried expressions, Ruby smiled up at them, her face practically glowing. "But I don't have to be alone anymore, right?"

Beaming at the smaller girl, Nora jumped on her, suffocating her with a hug. She was just so glad that Ruby didn't feel like she had to be alone anymore, it meant that she had completely accepted that they were going to follow her to the ends of the earth and that she'd never leave them behind.

Ruby didn't even struggle under the weight of the older girl, happily snuggling into her chest as she was smothered, lightly laughing at the comical sight they must provide to the chuckling Ren.

Life in that moment was perfect for the young teen, and despite the fact that she would never have her love returned from the two it mattered most, she knew that she was still loved, and wouldn't have to be alone.


	8. Chapter 6 - Of Sinister Sisters and Birthdays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Sinister Sisters are back and Ruby has her first birthday in Beacon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my lovelies! I didn't actually think that i'd get this finished and posted as soon as I have but it is done and now here for you to read. The outfit in the story is basically this image but with Ruby's symbol on the back and bow. https://darlingarmy.deviantart.com/art/Ed-Elric-Fullmetal-Alchemist-Kimono-Dress-438841448  
> I hope you enjoy the chapter and I'll try to update again soon.
> 
> Word Count: 11,897

Five weeks. Ruby had been at Beacon for five weeks and all she’s seen so far is Jaune get beaten around by Cardin of all people. She was almost going to step in too, because watching was just becoming painful for everyone involved and she had told the boys that she’d hunt them down if they ever picked on her friends again, but she knew that as a leader, Jaune needed to get his shit sorted out.

Ruby knew that Jaune lied his way into the school, but she trusted in Ozpins intuition and if Ozpin says that the Arc could be something, then maybe he could, he just couldn’t keep going around like he was. Pyrrha deserved better then that as a leader, so did Ren and Nora, who she had taken to pulling away from their team slightly to do some training with them.

She was still studying, training and even spending some of their spare time together as Team RWBY but she was really enjoying becoming friends with the other two. Nora was literally that girl friend that Ruby had always wanted. They spent time painting each other’s nails and talking about random stuff like training schedules and what they’ve done to maintain the ridiculous amount of power they both hold.

Nora kept bugging her one time for photos of Qrow and they both spent the afternoon fawning over the photos Ruby had managed to get of the man when he was training outside in the summer, his shirt off and chest sweaty. It was nice to act like a girl and giggle over pictures of men she liked, especially the ones she took while he trained. There was a couple of photos of him practicing with his scythe, the curved blade and staff and the focused expression making him look sexier and deadlier than ever before.

On the flip side, Ren was the perfect companion for when she wanted some quiet or just wanted someone to sit with while she was feeling down and mellow. He never tried to make her talk but was always ready to listen when she wanted to vent, and he had started showing her his meditation techniques, spending some time each afternoon meditating on the dorm rooftop. They were really helpful for managing her emotions during the day, especially when it came to dealing with Weiss and Cardin on a daily basis.

She really loved having them both as friends and with their promise to never leave her alone, Ruby went out to find a way that would symbolise just how much they meant to her. After her talk with them both in Ozpins office at the end of the first week, Ruby had special ordered extra sets of the Far Away Flowers from Atlas for each of them, for when they are away from each other like on team missions or for holidays and stuff.

She had ordered five and had almost immediately regretted it. The four she could understand, one for Ren and Nora each, powered by Ruby’s Aura and two for Ruby, powered by Ren and Nora’s Aura. It was the fifth that she had bought on an impulse and wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to do with.

While all the flowers were somewhat symbolic of their counterpart – deep red roses for Ren and Nora and two lotus flowers for Ruby, one orange and the other a genetically engineered black – Ruby had also ordered a deep green rose, which was random at the time but now that she thought about it, Ruby knew exactly why she did it and wanted to bang her head against a wall for it.

Besides the fact that Ozpin hadn’t gone out on a mission that could hurt him in years, she didn’t know how to ask him about powering the flower. It would be awkward, and she didn’t want him thinking into it too much because really, what else could you think when a girl asks you to power a Far Away flower designed for the spouse of a Hunter. They wouldn’t arrive for another couple of weeks though, so she didn’t have to worry too much about it, but still. 

It was lunch, one fine Wednesday morning though, that found Ruby not thinking about flowers or Ozpin or even Qrow. No, that morning found Ruby Rose listening in as both Team JNPR and RWBY tried to convince Jaune that he was being bullied. The blonde teen was heavily in denial and it was horribly painful to witness him try and come up with honestly terrible excuses.

Ruby was tired of it. While she hadn’t seen much of it, Cardin choosing to try and test his luck away from the hooded girl, she still caught glimpses of the acts and was appalled. Not just by Cardin acting like he never mentally grew beyond 12, but because Jaune was supposed to be a leader. His team’s leader and he was being the biggest let down she could possibly imagine. He needed to get his head on straight before Ruby shoved him in a locker and sent him home. His team deserved better then what he was giving them.

Hearing Cardin’s obnoxious laugh, Ruby glanced over a few tables to see Velvet surrounded by Team CRDL at her table, shuffling nervously. She’ll keep on eye on that for now. Velvet is usually okay when it came to handling bullies.

“Jaune, Cardin’s been picking on you since the first week of school.”

“What? Cardin Winchester? Pah… he’s not picking on me. He’s just messing around, you know… its more like practical jokes and stuff.”

Giving the blonde a dry look, Ruby sighed into her tray before flung a grape at him, making him look to her. “At what point do you think practical jokes become bullying then, Jaune?”

“What?”

“You think all the times he’s playing ‘practical jokes’ on everyone its fine? You think he can start tripping up and knocking down the books of every student just because you want to call it a ‘practical joke’? You’re a joke.” Ruby expressed, her tone flat and expressionless, most of her attention still on Velvet. Cardin wasn’t leaving her alone.

“That’s not-” Jaune tried before Ruby cut him off again.

“Yeah it is. You’re just too weak to admit that he’s being a bully and you happen to be his victim.” Ruby took the slightest bit of pleasure in the way he flinched when she called him that. “That’s right. You’re a victim, because you don’t ever do anything to stop him. Some people can’t, but you have no reason to be taking all that crap. He may be a team leader but so are you. Start acting like it.”

Finished with her little speech, Ruby looked back down at her tray with disdain, she didn’t really want any of it anyway. Ignoring the shocked looks she was getting from Jaune, Pyrrha, Wiess and Blake, Ruby made to stand when she heard Velvet’s voice calling out in pain. Looking back over, she saw that Cardin had a rather strong grip on one of the rabbit faunus’ ears, pulling on it like an idiot, laughing to his teammates.

Slamming her tray back on the table, Ruby didn’t even look over as she called her sisters name before she marched her way over to the table, pulling her hood up as she went.

Hearing Velvet call out too, Yang wasn’t the least bit surprised when Ruby practically growled out her name as she stomped over to the troublesome team. Grinning like a madman, Yang leapt from her seat and raced after her sister, activating her Semblance as she caught up, moving to step in front of her young sister and kept pace. The formation and movements were so familiar it was almost like welcoming a friend home as they moved, closing in on the oblivious team.

Both teens ignored the whispers that had started when the younger had slammed her tray, at least a quarter of the students in the cafeteria knew exactly what was going to happen and rushed to explain to the not so lucky ones what was happening.

It was one of those such whispers that caught Blakes attention, someone saying how they had been waiting since the first day for something like that to happen.

“Excuse me?” The disgust clear in her voice. “You’ve been waiting for what to happen? Cardin to finally find a Faunus to pick on?”

“What?” Looking up from her friend who she was whispering to, the random girl turned to face the angry girl. “No, no, no, no. Not that, not that at all. Sometimes we forget that most of you guys aren’t from around here and don’t know all the fun stories about these two.”

“What stories? I thought they were just a pair of lucky idiots. One is boisterous and annoying and the other a little sneak who managed to get in early somehow.” Weiss piped up from behind Blake.

Both girls were shocked when not just the random stranger they were talking to, but almost the whole table facing the end turned to glare at the Heiress. “Nobody here will be having any hard feelings about breaking your face if you say that again.” The random girl seethed, her voice dripping with venom.

It was another girl from further down the table that explained though. “Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long are the most famous pair to ever pass through Signal Academy, and not because they were successful after they become huntresses, but because of how they got there. Yang is famous for not only her top scores in all hand- to-hand combat classes, but also because of her fierce protectiveness of her younger sister Ruby. Ruby though, finished top of her class in literally every class available at Signal. She flew through the years and classes like they were nothing and only came second to her sister in Hand-to-Hand because of Yang Semblance and fighting style.”

“So, we find it both insulting and down right stupid of _you_ to say that about our hero’s. Ruby earned her way into this academy fair and square, she finished her schooling in Signal last year like her sister. She deserves to be here more than you do probably.” The first girl growled, glaring at the Schnee before turning away.

Sensing that was the end of it, Blake turned back to watch as the sisters finally reached Cardin and his team. “That doesn’t explain what you’re so excited about though.” Blake realise, looking back to the group of Signal graduates.

“Oh. Yeah, there was a group formed back in Signal called the ‘Triple S Club’. They were students who had been bullied at school but were saved by what they’ve been forever named, the ‘Sinister Sisters’. Yang and Ruby would somehow manage to find all the spots that bullies would use to pick on the less experienced students and beat them up, creating a rather formidable reputation for the pair. The victims of each bully ended up coming together to help and support each other through the rest of their schooling, some stronger in areas where others were weaker and helping out. Yang would visit them every once in a while, to help out when she could, mostly with the Hand-to-Hand and self defence stuff. They are literally the best thing to have ever happened to Signal.”

Looking back over to the sisters, both of them looming over Team CRDL who had only just noticed their presence, Blake could see why they had such a name. Surely from the front view it must have been more terrifying, but it was a scary sight, none the less.

* * *

 

Approaching the idiotic team still laughing at poor Velvet's expense, Ruby glowered from under her hood, wanting to just punch them in the face but knew that would egt her in trouble. Her sister presence before her though, was a comforting feeling and the almost rush she was getting from just doing this again was addictive. There was something wonderful about beating up bullies with her sister, it was such a great bonding moment for them both.

Yang could feel the anger rolling off her little sister not even a pace behind her and was almost worried about the poor suckers they were approaching, but seeing the grip Cardin still had on Velvet’s ear, she reconsidered. They deserve what ever pain and humiliation they get coming.

Finally coming up on the group, Yang flared her Semblance out to attract attention and punched Cardin right in the face. His Aura took the brunt of the blow, but it still would have hurt, just not left a mark.

Letting go of the long ear in his hand, Cardin reeled back at the unexpected punch and fell off his chair. Standing once more as he rubbed his face, he spun to face the idiot who punched him only to came face to face with a red eyed powerhouse who seemed to be on fire, the slight licks of the blondes flames burning him. “What the hell, you bitch!”

Yang only grinned at him before she stepped aside and let Ruby through, choosing instead to level the rest of his team with a deadly glare, freezing them all in place.

“Cardin, Cardin, Cardin. Just what kind of stupid thing have you done today?” Ruby asked, her voice sickly sweet as she stepped forward, not even remotely bothered by the height difference. Seeing his glare shift to her, Ruby glanced over to his team. “Didn’t I tell you boys that if I ever saw you touching one of my friends, I’d hunt you down?”

At both Russel and Sky’s frantic nods she cocked her head. “So did you tell him or not? Surely a team leader would listen to such advice from his team mates.”

“W-we told him, b-but he didn’t listen. And we didn’t know that she was your friend. We swear!” Sky stammered out, no sure if he should be looking at Ruby or the glaring blonde.

“And you somehow think that just picking on another person is much better? I thought you boys were better than that. Clearly I was wrong.” Ruby sighed, taking great satisfaction in the way they dropped their head in shame, clearly a few of them actually had something resembling morals, it was just their team leader who was leading them astray.

Turning her head back to said boy, Ruby cocked an eyebrow at the way he was huffing down at her. “Now Cardin, seeing as they did tell you about my warning, I’m assuming that this is just your teeny, tiny brain trying to do something and failing.” Ruby pouted, internally grinning at the way he growled. “But let me make something clear for you. Just because _you_ don’t know if their one of mine or not, does not mean you can go around picking on them. Am I clear?”

Staring down at the righteous looking hooded girl, Cardin just snorted, clearly, she thought she was something bigger than what she actually was, a child. “Look, Little Red Riding Hood, just because you beat us once doesn’t mean that your tough or anything. It just means that you got lucky, and we don’t have to listen to anything you say. Got it? Plus, she was freak anyway, stupid little bunny ears on top of her head.”

Listening to the bigger boy gloat, Yang winced at moment he called Velvet a bunny. Stepping a little further away and gently nodding for the other boys to copy her actions, Yang planted her feet in preparation.

_‘A bunny? Little bunny ears? Who does he think he his? Nobody calls Velvet a bunny!’_

Feeling her emotions reach an all time high for the year, Ruby’s silvers eyes almost burned as her Semblance let loose, her rose petals speeding around her madly causing several trays around her to be lifted in the slight wind vortex she was building.

Reaching up, Ruby gripped the taller boy’s ear and ripped his head down to hers, making them eye level in the most painful way. “You think that’s funny?! You think that causing other people pain is amusing?! You are one sick little boy who apparently never matured past playing in his sand box if that’s the case but let me make something clear for you. There is nobody, _nobody_ else in this room, or in this school that is a freak besides you, you sadistic little shit. And just to make one last thing clear; Velvet is a Rabbit Faunus, not a bunny.”

Not even listening to his pitiful whining as the tightly pinched grip she had on his ear twisted, Ruby marched towards the door of the cafeteria, everyone moving out of her way as she went and a couple of people opening both doors for her as she approached. Reaching the threshold, Ruby leaned down to his crouched and whimpering side one last time.

“I say this one last time.” She whispered into his ear, twisting even harder for good measure. “You stay away from my friends and the people I care about, and if you don’t know who they are, then pick your victims carefully, because I _will_ be watching.” She promised before she pulled his head up and kicked him in the stomach, throwing him straight out the doors and into a tree across the way.

Not even glancing back to see if he hit anyone else, Ruby spun on her heel and stormed back into the building, the doors closing behind her as she made her way to Velvet. Approaching the poor Faunus girl rubbing her sore ear, Ruby quickly wrapped her in a hug before she stood to get a better look at the ear. It didn’t seem to be cut anywhere and wasn’t bruising which was good, it was just really sore from being gripped so hard.

Ruby told her so before she heard her name being called out from the opposite side of the cafeteria. One Glynda Goodwitch was marching towards her with a large frown covering her face. Ruby stood and faced the angry professor, not flinching in slightest as she stopped barely a foot before her.

“What do you think your doing?” Goodwitch seethed, her anger barely restrained. She didn’t like the girl to start with but clearly starting fights in the cafeteria was beyond what the professor could handle, and she was done with the girl getting away with everything, ignoring the fact that she had yet to do anything wrong to get away with.

“I’m not sure what you’re referring to, Professor Goodwitch.” Ruby replied, her tone flat but not disrespectful. If the lady wanted to try and come at her, let her try.

“I’m talking about you clearly starting a fight in the middle of lunch.”

Ruby looked back to Yang who was inching forwards to also take the blame when she shook her head. Ruby was going to handle this without anyone else getting in trouble for it. “I didn’t start any fight, Professor.”

“I saw Miss Xiao Long punch another student in the face, Miss Rose. You can’t deny that, everyone saw it.” Goodwitch said, trying not to sound pleased that she had finally caught the caped girl out.

“Yes, you all did. But I’d like to remind you that harming someone or thing in the protection of ones self or someone else is classified as self-defence. Yang did nothing wrong.” Ruby retorted, her voice flat and face neutral.

Glynda mentally huffed in self-righteous fury before moving on. “Fine, but you-”

“Look Professor.” Ruby said, cutting the older lady off but wanting to just get it over with. “I will only admit the fact I may have thrown around a couple of plates and kicked a fellow team leader out of the building. There is nothing else you can fault me for.”

“And what about when you practically ripped mister Winchester’s ear off?” Glynda tried, hoping to catch her for more than just a couple of students fighting, which really could be passed off as a learning experience or training outside of class. It had happened before.

“If you were to try and get me in trouble for that, it would make you either discriminatory or racist, Professor. I’d advise against it.”

“What? How would that make me racist or discriminatory?”

“You clearly weren’t going to step in and make trouble for Cardin when he was pulling on Velvet’s ear. Why am I a different case?”

“Because you were clearly doing it to inflict pain.”

“And so was he.” Ruby argued, internally grinning at the way Goodwitch was starting to glow almost red in the face. “So that would mean that you either don’t mind the fact that Faunus can get bullied and abused in your presence which makes you racist or you are discriminating against me as a person who is younger and therefore not in the norm of this school. So, which is it, Professor? Are you discriminatory against every student who’s methods of entrance are outside the norm or are you racist against the Faunus?”

At the pregnant silence that followed her question, Ruby nodded. “I thought so. Since you seem to clearly have a problem against me or the Faunus, I’d prefer whatever punishment I get comes from the Headmaster. I’ll report to him right away.”

Moving passed the stunned Professor, Ruby smiled softly at Velvet and grinned at the wink Yang sent her way before she made it to the door, the same two students opening them for her, earning them an earnest smile from the grateful girl. Turning back to see Goodwitch staring after her with a frown on her face, Ruby called out to her, one last word, as always. “Professor Goodwitch. I believe I warned you about this last time. If you want to make an example of me, find something I’m bad at.”

And with that she left, letting the doors swing closed behind her and not looking back, heading straight to Ozpins office across the campus. After a minute, Ruby could hear the entire cafeteria cheering loudly at the Sinister Sisters first successful mission in Beacon and Ruby’s utter smashing of the Professor who quite frequently tried to make an example of the girl. Ruby didn’t even bother looking to see if Cardin was still leaning against the tree she kicked him into on her way, choosing to just head straight for the tower, silently celebrating in her head as she went.

* * *

 

“Ruby.” Ozpin greeted once he saw that it was she who had decided to come visit him, amusement and confusion clear in his voice.

After what happened at the end of the first week, Ruby didn’t visit him much in his office, choosing instead to build a better relationship with her team. That’s not to say that they didn’t see each other at all. As promised to the younger girl, Ozpin would take Ruby on hunting trips, going deep into the Emerald Forest on the weekends and continuing with their training. The Headmaster was continually surprised at what the hooded girl could do with her powers and Ruby was steadily improving in her combat skills, Ozpin continuing Ruby’s training with her scythe as well as RoseBud.

They seemed to have had an unspoken agreement to not talk about what they both knew Ozpin heard from his office. The man had returned to his office at what seemed to be the wrong time, as he heard Ruby clearly stating her love for him and just how much that love costs her. It was painful to hear, and he knew he was going to talk to Qrow about it a lot when he got back, but for the time being, he chose not to comment, although he was certain that Ruby knew he heard.

And for her part, she did. Ruby had always been able to sense when Ozpin was near but was already too deep in the conversation to not say it. Plus, finally knowing that the other man knows was almost a relief for her. Almost. It hurt more than anything, because while she knew that there was nothing she could do to make them love her, she apparently held the tiniest shimmer of hope, deep in her heart, that they someday could. The fact that he was clearly avoiding the topic, pretending that he hadn’t heard her at all just confirmed what she already knew. She would never be anything but the small friend he’d made a decade ago. A child.

None of that though, explained why she was standing in his office in the middle of the school day. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

“To whom, would be better, I think. And I’d say Professor Goodwitch is who you can blame this one on.” Ruby replied, standing tall and proud, her voice clear and strong. This was definitely not the child he had encountered for the many years of their friendship.

“Oh?” Ozpin replied, his tone just as cool, a brow raised in question.

“I’m here to receive my punishment, sir.” Ruby grinned internally at the way his eyes seemed to snap towards hers for a second in shock before he masked it. _‘Interesting.’_

“And for what am I punishing you, Miss Rose.” Ozpin inquired, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the table, his face straight and almost curious.

Gripping her hands behind her back, Ruby slowly swung them, taking slow, purposeful steps towards the man at the desk, humming all the way in thought. Reaching the desk, Ruby grinned slightly in memory of what happened in the cafeteria, her grin turning malicious quickly as she leant over the desk, putting her face as close to his as possible, holding eye contact the whole way. “I may have kicked a student out of the cafeteria today.” She purred, watching as his irises widened slightly.

Watching her approach, Ozpin was very much aware that they were skating on extremely thin ice, but the immediate transformation Ruby seemed to make from her normal self to someone of overpowering confidence, walking with a faux innocence, her eyelashes fluttering as she hummed. It wasn’t until she was at his desk that he grew the slightest bit worried. Her lips twitched from their innocent smile and slowly crept into the shape of an almost malicious grin, her eyes glittering and her posture screaming of not a woman but a lioness. So sure in her actions and proud of her kill as she watched it squirm and bleed out. She was fierce, and not at all the little girl he thought he knew.

Distracted by her words, Ozpin’s head slid slightly to the side in confusion. “And just how did you kick this student out?”

“I kicked him. Literally.”

At the flat tone she used, Ozpin was started slightly. “You kicked him. Out of the cafeteria. Why?”

“Cardin Winchester deserved everything he got, and I apologise for nothing, but he was bullying Velvet, a rabbit Faunus from a second-year team and I wouldn’t stand for it.” Ruby explained with a slight shrug as she straightened up. The flirting was fun, but she was there for a reason and she knew that playing such a dangerous game would do more harm then good.

Snapping out of the haze that was clouding his mind, Ozpin nodded in understanding. “Ah, Mister Winchester… I see. That would certainly result in an altercation but does not explain what you’re doing up here.”

At this, Ruby sighed and hung her head. “Goodwitch was in the cafeteria and tried to get me in trouble for the whole of it but I argued back and called her racist in the process. She very muchly so hates me right about now, so I told her I’d get my punishment from you.”

“Ruby.” Ozpin sighed, his head hanging too. “What exactly _did_ you do? This is all very ambiguous and confusing.”

“Oh.” Ruby perked up at that, she had the perfect way to show him if the Signal graduates were any good. Planting her hand on the desk, Ruby flipped herself over it to stand beside the sitting man, shocking him slightly but ignoring that in favour of getting to his keyboard. Reaching across the man, Ruby tried to ignore the way his chest was pressing against her back in a rather enjoyable manner, instead focusing on typing in one very familiar weblink, clicking on the most recent video posted.

Leaning back to let the other man watch, Ruby leaned against the side of the chair as she too watched the footage of the whole thing. Someone had started filming just after she slammed her tray down and was really impressed with how well the other students knew her. Ruby watched through it all, thoroughly enjoying the scared looks on the rest of Team CRDL faces as she ripped the taller boys face down to hers, her Semblance flaring out and causing a few lunch trays close enough to fly else where while her rose petals started to block the view slightly.

She especially liked how the light from outside the door managed to frame her in just a way that only the silhouette of her, hood up and back straight was caught in the frame, her rose petals still flowing slightly from her cape. _‘I totally need to print that one.’_

Ozpin watched with quiet satisfaction as Ruby seemed to practically burn with fury at the team, literally kicking the first year team leader out and turning back to the room at large, the silhouette of her in the doorway something that would forever be burned in his mind. That is certainly something else right there. She almost looks like a goddess in that moment. He was waiting for her to reach back across and close the video when he noticed the whole extra minute still going.

It wasn’t until he heard a familiar voice call out that he understood, and he watched as Ruby verbally pushed the female professor down quite a few pegs, practically embarrassing the poor woman in front of a whole cafeteria full of students.

“Well you’re certainly not going to be getting any brownie points for that.” He commented after a few moments. Ruby had reached back across to close the screen once it finished and left him to his thoughts.

“At the rate I’m going, I might as well resign myself to the fact that she will hate me for the rest of her life and I’m never going to be able to change it.” Ruby shrugged, not even worried about it anymore.

“Not with the approach you’re taking.” Ozpin agreed, taking a sip of his drink.

“It’s not like I do it on purpose.” Ruby tried to defend herself, she really didn’t go looking for trouble, it just managed to find it’s way to her. “She starts all of it, she just can’t handle when I finish it.”

“Yes well, she was really not pleased that you managed to hide so well under her nose for years.”

“She doesn’t have act like a child about it though.” Ruby grumbled, shifting to sit on the desk with her arms and legs crossed.

Ozpin looked at her from the corner of his eye before leaning back in his chair. “She doesn’t, no. But she’s going to anyway.”

Uncrossing her arms to lean back on as she placed them behind her, Ruby hummed in agreement before she looked back to the older man. “So now that you know what happened, what kind of punishment do you think would please the stroppy huntress?”

“Detention should do it.”

“Thought you’d say that.” Ruby agreed, nodding her head. “But who with? It can’t be you, and please don’t put me with Port. He’s great and all but I don’t think I can handle many more of his stories if I don’t have to.” Ruby practically begged, she really, really couldn’t handle the man. He droned, and it was annoying.

Hearing the desperate tone, Ozpin looked back at her from the corner of his eye and smirked. “I should put you with him anyway, just to annoy you.”

Glaring straight at him, Ruby smiled slightly at the grin he wore. He didn’t smile enough. “I will kill you.” She promised, a mock glare aimed at him. “I know where you sleep.”

“Oh, how terrible,” Ozpin mocked, “The girl in red is going to murder me in my sleep. What ever shall I do?”

Giggling at his terrible girl voice, Ruby smiled at him lightly before jabbing him in the shoulder, trying to get him to be serious. “Really though, who are you putting me with and for how long?”

“How about Oobleck? He’s not too bad for you, actually he seems to quite like you in his classes.”

“Doctor Oobleck is good. He’s a quick talker but I’ve always been able to translate quick talk. It’s the slow ones I have trouble with.” Ruby shrugged. She really liked the doctor because although he speaks at an almost uncomprehend able speed, his lessons have always been informative and interesting. “How long though?”

“How about just to the end of the week. That’s three sessions of detention for kicking Cardin out of the Cafeteria. There wasn’t really anything else you did that truly requires punishment as I don’t think anyone was going to complain about the lunch trays.” Ozpin offered, there really wasn’t much for him to punish. Students and especially team leaders fight between each other all the time, it’s almost part of the charm of the hunter’s academies.

Ruby thought on it for a moment and shook her head. “How about we add on the weekend too. Three after school detentions and two weekend detentions. That should make Goodwitch happy.”

“You are one very peculiar student, you know. I don’t there has ever been a student that suggests more detention. But fine, we can add on the weekend too. I’ll tell Bart today and you can head straight to his classroom after you finish your afternoon class.” Ozpin agreed, moving forwards to send the message to the History Professor

“Thanks.” Ruby said, glancing at the clock and realising she’d have to rush. “I better be getting back, class is gonna start soon. Thanks for the detention.” Jumping off the desk, Ruby leaned up to kiss him on the cheek before she ran for the door to the stairs, not wanting to waste time waiting for and in the elevator.

Meeting back up with her team, Ruby told them about her detention before she moved off to class, deflecting the questions and grinning to Nora as she offered her fist out for a fist bump. Ruby obliged, bumping her fist against the other girls before sidling up next to her sister smiling as she high fived the offered hand and took the arm held out to her a moment later, the pair happily skipping to the next class.

The others shrugged, not really sure what to do about the pair and just followed along, the sisters setting a rather good mood for the rest of the day. Both girls were extremely pleased with themselves, having kicked Cardin’s ass again and just enjoying the feel of doing something that was just them, again.

To add to it, both girls were also excited for the weekend, which was odd for them because they don't usually do anything on the weekends but this one was special.

The pair hadn't told their team but the Sunday coming was Ruby's 16th birthday and they were hyped to celebrate it as they usually did. Ruby was never one for the big parties and lots of people, her anxiety making crowds rather difficult for the girl and she never really had many friends before so both girls would just pack some food and have a picnic somewhere.

They would usually just find somewhere around Patch, a new place each year, but now they had the opportunity to find good spots in Beacon. Unknown to Ruby, Ren and Nora knew about her birthday too and had already asked Yang about what they were doing, to which they had been excitedly invited to the picnic.

 

 

With the rest of the week continuing like normal, the weekend finally rolled around, and Ruby had left early for her last session of ‘detention’. Really, Ruby had spent the last four sessions following the doctor around, helping him tidy up his office and reorganise the books in the classroom and his personal bookshelf. He was constantly surprised at her knowledge of history and kept up with him wonderfully in conversation, even allowing him to carry on talking about parts of history that she hadn’t yet learned.

The doctor was just going to get the girl to tidy up the classroom but when she did such an amazing job so quickly, he moved her onto the bookshelf at the back of the class, which managed to take her until the end of her first session. The second afternoon, Oobleck wasn’t sure what to do with the girl and just got her to tidy up his office space while he did some marking on a different desk and was surprised to turn around once he finished to find her dusting the perfectly organised area. They spent the last of their time with Ruby telling him how she had organised his space, finishing it off by telling him that she had also written an organisational manual for if he gets confused or forgets.

They then spent the next couple of sessions with Ruby reorganising whatever space he appointed her, the quick speaking doctor talking her ear off as she worked around his home office and apartment on the campus. Sunday was just a continuation of the previous day’s work, finally finishing the last bookshelf.

“Marvellous. Simply Marvellous, this is. Your organisational skills are exemplary. I cannot believe that I had such a talented student right beneath my nose the entire time.” He expressed once she finished with his apartment. “I can’t think of anything else for you to do so would you like to sit and have some coffee with me?”

“While I’m sure there is plenty else to do, I would love to sit with you. Do you have any hot chocolate though, I don’t quite like coffee if I don’t need it?” Ruby said, running her fingers lightly across all the history books the man had on his bookshelf before sitting at the table. “I love your book collection though. It’s so interesting to hear and read about what it was exactly that made humanity succeed or fail in certain areas of history.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever had a student that was actually interested in history before. Do you wish to further study history as you progress perhaps?”

Ruby sighed at the question before she took a quick sip of the offered drink, her tongue basking in the wonderful flavours of the hot chocolate. “No, not in this life time at least. I find history to be a good learning tool, a way of measuring our mistakes and learning from them. There were many, many mistakes made throughout all of time and we are lucky enough to know some of them. I’d like to use whatever knowledge I can from the past to make sure that our future is secure, and we don’t fall into the same traps.”

Oobleck just nodded, tapping his chin in thought as he hummed an agreement. “Yes, yes. That is all very true. I’ve certainly never had a student who looked at it like that. If I may ask though, why is it that you want to become a huntress?”

“To protect people.” Ruby answered. It was simple and easy and the answer she’d always had. Ruby wanted to protect people, from the Grimm, from dangerous people and from evil people like Hazel and Salem.

“From what?”

“What?” Looking back to the surprisingly still man, Ruby contemplated her answer. “I want to protect people from whatever it is that will hurt them.”

“Even other people?”

“If it’s other people who are threatening the lives of innocents, then yes. The world isn’t black and white as I’m sure you know. It isn’t just the people against the Grimm. It’s people against the people. The people against the Faunus. The Faunus against the people. There are so many different sides to a never-ending battle. I want to protect those who can’t protect themselves and stop those trying to do them harm.”

“Do you know what that means for Hunters though? Truly?” Oobleck asked. Her answers so far had been strong with conviction and she almost sounded like she knew exactly what she was getting into but she was young and he wanted to make sure that she knew what she was doing when she chose such a profession.

“For some, saving Humanity means the cost of their own. I understand what you’re trying to say here doctor, but I’ve chosen this path with a clear head and open eyes. I know what I’m doing.” Ruby replied with a gentle smile, her voice strong and clear. She was glad that he thought well enough of her to be worried about how she may turn out if she were to become a huntress like Qrow is. Killing other humans for the sake of Humanity.

“Hmmm, your conviction is strong, I can see. Well, I guess there is no changing your mind now, is there?” At the younger girl’s hum of confirmation, Oobleck sighed into his mug. “It is getting quite close to lunch. You may finish your drink with me if you like or you may go, you have certainly accomplished much during these sessions of detention.”

Looking down to her still mostly full mug, Ruby smiled a small shy smile to the doctor, answering her preference to finish her drink with him if it was okay. She was waiting on a call from her sister and didn’t really have anything else to do until she called.

 

 

Yang was pleased with the fact that Ruby managed to talk her way into the weekend detention sessions, the older girl had always needed half the day to prepare and set up the picnic. Ren and Nora were a big help though, as she raced around the student kitchen,  putting in and pulling out trays of chocolate chip cookies for the picnic. The other teens just asked what she needed help with and grabbed it, which was especially helpful when it became apparent that their kitchen didn't have any strawberries and they needed to hunt some down, fast. The pair had managed to find a boat load of them and brought back a large bowl full of them, all of them bright red and juicy - Nora could confirm.

“Right. So, we have the cookies, we have the strawberries, we have the flavoured milk and we have the pancakes and various toppings. We also have some chips and candies and soda’s and some other fruits for later in the day. Anything else?” Yang asked, putting each food in the large basket she grabbed as she listed them. The pancakes weren’t in the norm for them but Nora was coming and it was required. “Ruby counts cookies as a meal in itself, what am I worried about. Now, where shall we go? I haven’t thought at all about it at all.”

Lifting her head from the basket, a pancake hanging out of her mouth, Nora tried to suggest something when Ren sighed and pulled the fluffy food from her lips. “Either talk or eat, don’t do both.”

“Fine.” Nora huffed, before she looked back to the blonde. “Ruby seems to like heights a lot so why don’t we ask if we can borrow the Headmaster’s balcony? I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if it was Ruby.”

“That is… brilliant! She loves him and he will do anything for her and she really does love heights. The balcony would be perfect. Now just to ask him… I don’t exactly have his number.”

“We could just go up and ask him. If we’re so certain he’ll agree, then it won’t be a problem.” Nora suggested, finishing her pancake before she spoke that time.

“Good idea, let’s go.”

 

 

“Miss Xiao Long… and Miss Valkyrie and Mister Ren. To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?” Ozpin greeted, as he watched the elevator doors opening, having granted them access. It was a Sunday and they had a picnic basket in his office. He was confused.

“We were wondering if we could borrow your balcony for the afternoon? It’s Ruby’s birthday today and we usually go on a picnic and I thought up here would be perfect.” Yang explained, walking over to the desk.

“It’s Ruby’s birthday today? I never knew…” Looking down at his desk, Ozpin frowned in thought for moment before another thought hit him. “Wait, is this why I have a package from Qrow? It only says to give it to her on Sunday but I wasn’t sure which Sunday he was referring to.”

“Oh sweet, it did come. I was really worried that he wouldn’t get it here on time. Yeah that’s her birthday present from him. If he’s on a mission when it rolls around, he somehow always manages to get her present to her just before it. It’s really impressive actually.” Leaning over slightly to see around the man, Yang frowned when she couldn’t find it. “Do you have it here or is it somewhere else…?”

Ozpin smiled slightly at her frown before he stood, walking across the room to the sofas where the large but flat package was sitting on the coffee table. “It’s been sitting here since yesterday. It was just sitting here when I got back from something and I assumed that Delilah put it there.”

Practically bouncing over to the package, still wrapped in the packaging bag, Yang ripped it off to reveal a neatly wrapped box with a bow, clearly done in a store. “Awesome. I wonder what it is this time. I mean, clearly cloths but I wonder where from.”

“However curious I am as to how you know that, I do believe you wanted to use my balcony?” Ozpin stated and watched as the blonde looked back up to him in shock and glanced to the time on his desk, gasping as she saw the time and raced out the doors to his balcony, setting out the blanket and zipping around as she placed different foods out.

“Was there a time limit I wasn’t aware of?” The older man asked as he noticed that the orange haired girl had joined in the rush to set up.

“I think she wanted to be ready when Ruby’s detention finished, which was two minutes ago.” Ren replied, he too watching the girls run about, setting out the plates of cookies and strawberries.

Looking back to the time, Ozpin nodded slightly in agreement, before he moved the gift over to his desk as he moved over to grab his cane. Walking out to the girls, he stopped at the doorway and watched as his plain balcony got turned into something of a party area. The picnic was set up in the middle with some streamers wrapped around the railing and a small pile of presents set off to the side.

“Is there anything you would like me to do?” He asked, although it was apparently too late as both girls skidded to a stop jus beside him, puffing slightly at the rush but a pleased grin on both girls faces.

“Well, we’re finished now, if you could just call her up, that would be great.” Yang said, looking over her work. “Oh, don’t mention her birthday or anything… Just say that you have a package from Qrow. She’ll be here in seconds.”

“That is awfully quick, but okay. I’ll go call her now.”

 

 

Waving goodbye to Doctor Oobleck, Ruby walked back towards the main part of the campus, wondering when her sister was going to call her. It was just after lunch so it wasn’t like she was late but Ruby was starting to get restless. She was excited and was just waiting on one little phone call…

_‘Bri-’_

“Yang?!” She didn’t even look at the screen, just whipping out her Scroll as she heard it start ringing.

“No. Ozpin.” The older man greeted, chuckling at the sigh he heard.

“Oh…”

“It’s fine, Ruby. I understand that were waiting on your sister to call but she appears to be a little busy at the moment. I would like to ask though if you could come and get a package I have on my desk from Qrow. It was sent to me but has your name on it.”

“I’ll be right there!” Ruby didn’t even hang up before she used her Semblance to fly straight up to the top of the tower, zooming past her sister and friends on the balcony as she slid across the floor to stop right in front of the shocked but amused man still holding his Scroll.

“I only just hung up. I don’t think you’ve ever gotten anywhere that quick before.” Ozpin said, placing his Scroll on the desk and pushing the wrapped box towards the excitedly waiting girl. “Yang said seconds, but I didn’t quite believe her.”

“Yang?” Perking up from where she was bent over the wrapped box, Ruby looked back to the doors she’d just flown through to see her sister and her two best friends. “Yang!”

“Ruby!” Catching the red and black blur that flew at her, Yang hugged her sister close, spinning her a circle.

“And Nora!” The orange haired girl shouted, jumping into the hug, both sisters laughing at her but allowing her in.

Bouncing out of the hug, Ruby ran over and tackle hugged the other boy. “And Ren!” Looking back at everyone else, Ruby smiled the widest she had since she started at Beacon.

“Happy birthday Ruby!” Yang and Nora shouted, jumping on the pair, Ren too sharing his sentiments.

 

 

Having settled down significantly after about ten minutes, Ruby found herself seated on the picnic blanket spread across the floor, happily chowing down on plates of cookies and making a decent dent in the large bowl of strawberries, happily chatting with each of the teens sitting with her.

“I’m so glad you guys are here.” Ruby sighed, leaning back after she finished her fourth plate of cookies. “I know it’s usually just Yang and I for my birthday but I was really hoping you’d be here. You’re my best friends.”

“Naw… You’re our best friend too, Ruby. We love you!” Nora squealed, shuffling over to give the smaller girl a giant hug.

“I agree. Besides Nora, you are the best friend a guy could ask for.” Ren said, sending her a small smile from across the blanket.

Ruby smiled back to the teen, leaning into the wonderful hug Nora was giving her. Feeling the older girl shifting slightly, Ruby pulled herself forwards slightly until Nora had situated herself before leaning back into the girl to lie on her legs, her head cushioned by the other girl’s chest.

Smiling down to the smaller girl, Nora gently swept her hair away from her face before she reached for another strawberry, feeding it to the birthday girl. Nora grinned when she saw Ruby’s eyelids flutter as she basked in the flavour of the strawberry, and moved the bowl closer, continually feeding the girl once she finished one.

It was nice to see her so happy and relaxed. She was always either training or studying or even when she was hanging out with the partnered pair, Ruby always seemed to have this tenseness about her. Hearing her laugh and watching her relax was comforting for all three older teens.

Smiling up at Nora, Ruby looked out into the sky, wishing greatly that Qrow could be there with them. Although, looking back to her sister and friends, Ruby couldn’t say that she was disappointed with how the day turned out. Opening her mouth once again to accept a strawberry, Ruby glanced up to the orange haired girl when she huffed a laugh. Seeing the odd look she was giving the older girl, Nora chuckled lightly before nodding to the bowl.

“I think we should have grabbed another bowl of strawberries. One was clearly not enough.”

Looking down into the bowl, Ruby saw that there was only a small handful left of the beautiful, juicy fruits. Pouting up to the older girl, Ruby turned on the puppy eyes and practically tried to will another bowl into existence.

“There’s nothing I can do about it.” Nora laughed, pushing the younger girl’s hair away from her face. “I can’t just magically make another bowl full of strawberries appear… Or maybe I can…?”

Looking back to the mostly empty bowl, Ruby was shocked to find an identical bowl sitting right beside it, full of the delicious red berries. “Yay! Magic strawberries!”

Hearing Ozpin’s familiar chuckle from the doorway, Ruby craned her head around, mouth stuffed with berries as she watched Ozpin laughing lightly as he walked away from the group, his shoulder shaking. Swallowing her mouthful quickly, Ruby called out to the man. “Hey Ozpin?”

Stopping just before the doors, Ozpin turned to look back at the group. “Yes Ruby?”

“You know you can join us, right? I mean, only if you wanted to. I just thought, you know, because we’re on your balcony and you just got us more strawberries and you’re my friend and all…”

Looking back at the hopeful girl, Ozpin smiled slightly and nodded, getting a small cheer from the girl before telling her that he’d be back in a few moments. Quickly making his way across his office, he grabbed the wrapped gift, his mug and his cane from the desk before walking back to balcony, welcoming the cooler air and breeze.

Sitting down just on the edge of the picnic blanket, his cane and mug siting beside him, Ozpin held out the gift to the younger girl. “I do believe this is what made you fly across the campus in 5 seconds flat.”

Seeing the gift, Ruby shot up and out of Nora’s grasp, straight over the silver haired man to grab the box from his hands. Testing its weight slightly, Ruby raced off into the office and then the stair case leading down to Ozpins rooms, shouting that she was going to go put it on.

Looking over to Yang, Ozpin gave her raised brow in confusion. “How can you both tell that it’s clothes?”

Looking back from the door Ruby had just raced through, Yang looked at the man from the corner of her eye. She didn’t quite like the man, truthfully. Ruby clearly loved him and everyone present knew that but they also knew that every moment she spent with him must break her heart just a little each time. Yang also knew that if she said anything to him about it, then Ruby would most likely kill her, violently.

Huffing at the fact that she couldn’t chew the man out, especially on her little sister’s birthday, Yang looked at him properly. “Qrow gets Ruby a lot of odd things for her birthday and Christmas or something and usually they all come in odd shapes but if there is one thing that never changes it’s the fact that only clothes have ever come in a box. Especially one so well wrapped.”

“How often does he buy her cloths as a gift? I didn’t think Ruby was typically one for all the cute clothes and stuff.” Ozpin asked, noticing the side eye the blonde had given him but ignored it.

“She’s not usually but sometimes she just likes to feel a little cute and anything Qrow buys her, she is guaranteed to wear.” Yang responded before turning to look back at the door, knowing it never takes Ruby long to get into whatever outfit she received. And it was good timing too because not a moment later, a blur of petals shot back through the doors and stopped at the side of the blanket, in view of each person present.

Ozpin was confused for a second on why she was still just hovering there in a small vortex of petals when he heard Yang tell her to stop being so shy and just show them already. Ruby seemed to listen because a second later, the petals dropped, revealing Ruby in all her adorable glory, standing before them in what appeared to be a short kimono dress like what is worn in Mistral.

It wasn’t patterned or flowery like many of the actual kimonos looked like, the skirt being a solid black with a red overcoat with black accents, it was very much Ruby’s colouring and style. The skirt didn’t reach any further than mid-thigh, the red petticoat just barely seen from underneath. With the long flowing sleeves and the black belt with a small red and black bow at the front, it pulled into her waist and the top coat crossed over just below her neck, completely covering from her neck down.

Giving them a moment to take it in, Ruby bounced slightly on her toes in excitement, Qrow really thought of everything when it came to this one. “Look, look, look! He even got my emblem put on the back and on the bow! And he even got the thigh highs and the sleeves too! Oh, I love it.”

Spinning around, Ruby moved her cape aside to show the black rose on the back before she stuck her arms out of the sleeves, showing the tight black sleeves that covered the whole of her arms to the back of her palms, connected to a small gold ring around her middle fingers.

She grinned slightly at the next bit though, she was really impressed with it. “And, he even got the holes in the pockets cut.” Ruby explained as she stuck her hands in her pockets and pulled out RoseBud, quickly flicking through the functions with practiced ease, the sleeves flowing just as she liked and her hands shifting the blades around them as she moved.

Spending a couple of minutes quickly practicing with the weapons, Ruby flicked them back into her pockets once she was happy that she could fight with the sleeves on. Looking down to her feet though, resulted in a pout. “The only problem I have with the entire outfit?”

“The heels.” All five of them said at the same time, prompting a sharp laugh from the girl as she nodded and descended into giggles, leaning back on the railing to keep her balance. It didn’t help that everyone else had started laughing too, the simple fact that everyone knew Ruby’s greatest weakness was just too funny. “You guys know me so well.”

“Of course, we do. We’re your best friends.” Ren agreed, nodding his head sagely even though his shoulders were shaking with laughter too.

“Agreed.” Ozpin said once he too had stopped laughing. “If there is one thing someone must know to be classed as one of your best friends its that you hate heels.”

“And love strawberries!” Nora piped up, bouncing where she sat. She just couldn’t help herself, Ruby was too cute in that outfit. “But, awwwww. You look so cu~te!”

Hearing the compliment, Ruby couldn’t help the blush that crossed her face as she thanked her bubbly friend. Hearing Yang asking her to spin once more, the blushing girl happily obliged and spun beautifully on the spot, her arms out and enjoying the way the sleeves felt in the breeze when she heard the click of someone’s Scroll camera.

“Yang!” Turning to face the grinning blonde, Ruby dove for her sister, trying to get to her Scroll. “Delete it, delete it, delete it! Don’t you dare even think about sending that to people.”

“But Qrow deserves to see just how well his present looks, don’t you think?” The blonde replied, dancing around the balcony away from the pounces of her younger sister, grinning like a madman as she quickly sent the photo off.

“No! No, he doesn’t. He definitely does not need to see it. Especially not like that. Yang! You’re not even listening to me, are you?!”

“Nope.” The blonde replied as she saw that the image had sent. “And it’s sent, no more hope for you Little Red.”

Falling to her knee’s dramatically, Ruby wailed to the sky in despair at her sister, before she flopped onto Ozpins lap, fake crying. “Ozpin! Look what she’s done! She’s ruined me!”

Smiling down to the dramatic but adorable girl in his lap, Ozpin chuckled slightly as he patted her head, mockingly shaking his head. “Yes, yes. How terrible of Miss Xiao Long to be taking pictures of you and sending them off to her family. Perhaps I should give her detention.”

“Yes! Good idea. You can give her detention…” Looking back up to his face, Ruby noticed his grin and gasped in horror. “No…. You dare mock me? How could you? I thought we were friends!”

Rolling out of his lap, Ruby looked around to see everyone grinning at her. “You are all traitors, and you shall be beheaded for treachery… against your queen.” She claimed, standing in the middle of the blanket and moving to walk away when Yang and Nora both quickly moved to kneel before her, stopping the red clad girl in her tracks.

“My Queen.” They said, somehow in sync with each other. “We are terribly sorry for the pain we have caused you.”

Turning away from the pair, Ruby glanced back at them from the corner of her eye as she noticed they hadn’t moved at all. “And what would you offer me in apology for your treacherous behaviour?”

Not a second passed before both girls were back in their positions on the ground, this time holding their offerings above their heads.

“For you my Queen, I have brought the plate of cookies for you to eat.” Yang said, holding the plate up for Ruby to grab one. She did so, carefully picking the top one and taking small bites out of the cookie.

“This is an acceptable gift. You may move away. Do not betray me again.” Ruby finally decreed after a few moments of pondering, before she looked over to Nora. “And what is it that you have brought for me?”

“For you my Queen, I have brought the bowl of strawberries for you to eat.” Nora said, copying Yang as she held the bowl up for Ruby to take one. Repeating her motions, Ruby carefully selected one strawberry from the bowl and ate it slowly, trying to be regal about it but the power of the strawberry too much for her to handle and her eyelashes fluttered slightly as she basked in the flavour again.

Snapping out of her haze after hearing Ozpin chuckle slightly from behind her, Ruby sent a fierce glare in his direction before turning back to Nora, her voice haughty as she decreed that she too could sit, so long as she did not betray her again.

Turning back to the two men still seated on the blanket, Ruby glared down at them. “You who has mocked me and you who has laughed. Is there anything you wish to say before your heads are taken?”

Seeing his opportunity, Ren grabbed a third bowl that Ozpin had brought out, kneeling before the standing girl with the bowl above his head. “For you my Queen, I have brought more strawberries for you to enjoy.”

Staring down at the bowl in distrust, Ruby carefully selected another of the fruit and quickly ate it, not wanting to get lost in the flavour once more. “This is an acceptable gift, you may join your friends in safety. Do not betray me again.”

“Never again my Queen.” Ren responded as he backed away from the girl and moved to sit with his fellow teens, watching what the Headmaster was going to do to appease their majesty.

“And you.” Ruby said, her gaze zeroing in on the silver haired man, already kneeling before her. “You who has mocked and laughed at me. Give one reason I shouldn’t take your head?”

Glancing up from his kneeling position, Ozpin looked into Ruby’s eyes as he pulled a purple iris out of his jacket, the flower somehow not squished and still looking fresh. Laying the flower in his open palm, Ozpin tapped into his semblance, creating a small sphere of green to appear around his palm that slowly grew smaller until it melded with the flower. “For you my Queen, I present what I call a Forever Flower. This is a flower that, so long as I live, shall never wilt or die.”

Looking down to the dark purple petals, Ruby gently grasped the flower in her hands, lifting it to her nose to smell the beautiful fragrance. Not really sure what to say, Ruby asked the first question that came to mind. “Why a purple Iris?”

“In the language of the flowers, the purple Iris is symbolic of wisdom and compliments, my Queen.” Ozpin replied, not tearing his eyes away from the silver ones staring back.

“Damn, he’s got us beat.” Nora mumbled from beside Yang, who had pulled out her scroll and was filming the whole scene, silently. Yang could only nod as she watched on with rapt attention as the two silver featured people continued staring into each other’s eyes.

Hearing Nora’s mumble, Ruby blushed hard as she pulled the flower close to her chest. Straightening her shoulders and trying as hard as she could to force the blush off her face, Ruby spoke to the still kneeling man, her voice cracking slightly but ignoring it. “This is an acceptable gift. You may join the others in safety. Do not betray me again.”

“Never again my Queen.” Ozpin replied coolly as he stood and moved back to his position on the blanket.

Not quite sure how to continue on from that, Ruby stood there awkwardly for a few moments before Yang bloke the silence, tossing Ruby a gift from her, telling her to open it. Accepting her sisters move, Ruby sat back down on the blanket, shifting to get comfortable and started opening her gifts. Yang had gotten her a couple of new books, one on fairy tails and legends around Remnant and the other a novel that she had been waiting for ages to come out.

After asking Yang about what they could possibly get the younger girl as they had noticed that she didn’t really have much of an interest in material things that don’t have any meaning, Ren and Nora decided to buy the girl a charm necklace, considering she didn’t seem to like bracelets. The chain was plain silver but every second link was larger than the rest, allowing space for the clip-on charms to fit and not slide into each other.

Clipping the first two charms on, both the respective emblems of her friends, Yang handed her another small box. Giving her a quizzical look, Ruby took the box and opened it to see another two charms, one with her emblem and the other with Qrows. Ruby shot her sister a thankful smile before she attached the charms and did the necklace up, leaving the chain to lay over her clothes for the time being.

Nobody commented on the fact that Ruby’s blush didn’t fade until half an hour later, all of them deciding that she was just too cute like that and didn’t want her to storm out. Plus, once she started opening presents, she didn’t seem to notice it.

* * *

 

Walking into his room at the not quite reputable motel he was staying in, Qrow locked the door behind him before him before he pulled out his scroll. He had felt it buzz in his pocket earlier in the day but didn’t have the chance to look at it until then.

Making his way over to the bed, Qrow opened the messages from Yang, most likely sending a photo of Ruby in her birthday outfit. He was annoyed that he couldn’t reply or send Ruby birthday wishes but he knew that she understood. Flopping back onto the bed, he finally looked at the picture and was suddenly glad he wasn’t standing.

The picture was beautiful and he immediately saved the image to his Scroll before he looked at it again. She was wearing the dress he sent her, a gentle smile on her face as she appeared to be in the middle of a spin. With her arms out, the sleeves flowing gently around her and the sun sitting just above her head, she looked simply breath taking and he wished so hard he could have been there to see her in person.

Taking another couple of minutes to look at the picture, practically burning it into his memory, he exited the picture and saw that Yang had also sent a video with a small caption.

_‘Looks like you’ve got competition, old man.’_

Mentally cursing his niece about calling him old, Qrow opened the video and could honestly say that whatever he thought he was going to see, it wasn’t that.

With the sun still sitting just above Ruby’s head, her hair glowed in the light as she looked down at the silver haired man kneeling before her. Qrow could only watch in rapt attention as Ozpin procured a flower from his jacket and enchanted it with his semblance to never age, holding it up for the younger girl to take. It was a magical moment, even just watching it from the screen as he watched them both staring into each other’s eyes for a few moments, completely caught in the moment.

It was apparent that something had been going on previously, or Ozpin had just been calling Ruby his queen for the fun of it, but the simple beauty of it was amazing and Qrow couldn’t tell if he was the littlest bit jealous of Ruby or Ozpin in that moment. As Ruby seemed to snap out of her dazed look and accept the flower with a blush, Qrow couldn’t help but thank his niece mentally as she caught the breath-taking scene and was pleased that Yang had kept on filming after that, the end of the clip just catching the look Ozpin sent the younger girl as he called her his queen once again.

Clearly, Qrow wasn’t the only one with mixed feelings anymore, and if the way Ozpin was starting to look at Ruby, maybe they wouldn’t have to keep breaking her heart every time they were together.

Rewatching the clip a couple more times, Qrow went to bed, falling asleep to the memories of Ruby’s angel like image accepting a simple gift from the kneeling Ozpin. He was only five weeks into his mission and he already wished it was over.


End file.
